


Monster.

by haoshoumon



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Blood Drinking, Blood and Injury, Eventual Smut, M/M, Magic, Soonhoon - Freeform, Suspense, Urban Fantasy, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-28
Updated: 2021-01-16
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:26:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 30,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25573564
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/haoshoumon/pseuds/haoshoumon
Summary: Kwon Soonyoung's life was bad enough with all those whispers and shadows dancing around and playing with his skinny legs. He didn't understand why, of all the people, it happened only to him. He didn't understand why he was the only one who saw those nasty things that wanted to hurt him.But maybe it was better not to. Knowing nothing could be so much better than knowing it all.
Relationships: Kwon Soonyoung | Hoshi/Lee Jihoon | Woozi
Comments: 23
Kudos: 52





	1. The Before.

**Author's Note:**

  * A translation of [Monstro.](https://archiveofourown.org/works/25076770) by [gyuhaoland (haoshoumon)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/haoshoumon/pseuds/gyuhaoland). 



> Ok, so I'm having a lot of fun translating my works and I guess I'll keep doing it. This fanfic is also posted here and on Spirit Fanfics and yeah.  
> I started it back in 2017 and started rewriting this year, so it's... old. The main reason I did that is that I really love this plot and wanted to finish the story someday, so I hope y'all enjoy it as much as I do.  
> The prompt came to my mind when I saw a @Gehenna1986 fanart, that one with "Underworld" written and yeah here I am.

_ Tap. Tap. Tap. _

_ Tap. Tap. Tap. _

The footsteps outside were getting higher and higher and there was nothing Kwon Soonyoung could do to protect his people.

It wasn't as if a thirteen-year-old boy was going to be able to defend himself and his family against something that ordinary people couldn't even see. Of all the Kwon, he was the only one who possessed the Vision, and as much as many might say he was a Blessed One, he would not be so sure of that. After all, maybe it was a curse.

_ Tap. Tap. Tap. _

The thing was on the front porch, the strong shivers that shook the boy's body warned. Soonyoung covered his head with the blanket and closed his eyes; if he prayed hard enough, God could save him.

_ Tap. Tap. Tap. _

The thing had entered the house, but Soonyoung didn't know how. He was sure that all the doors and windows were locked tight, his father's OCD made sure several times a day. The old wooden ladder creaked a little bit, but only Soonyoung could hear. Ordinary people would never notice a move like that, no matter how much they wanted to.

He knew he was being provoked by the thing. That torturingly slow foot-dragging and deafening silence from God in the face of his desperate prayers were just a way of gradually driving him mad or even pissing himself like a baby.

First, the thing entered Soonyoung's parents' room. The boy could do nothing but shake under the blankets.

The boy felt it when the thing drank the life of the newborn baby sleeping among his parents. The pain was so intense that it made him want to scream, but he was too paralyzed to it. His whole body was frozen, and it was hard to know if it was fear or if the thing was doing something to him.

The next choice was his father. Soonyoung's chest burned as if on glowing embers, and even tears burned him. Did your father feel that too?

He wanted to run and scream for his mother to wake up and run away, but it was useless. Damn it, damn it, why couldn't he move a muscle? God, where are you? Please, please, please...

When it hit his mom, the pain overcame itself. Soonyoung felt his body break in two and then in four before it was crushed under an invisible and terribly obscure force. The only thing he asked God at that moment was to kill him too. He couldn't take much more of that.

However, the thing seemed not to have smelled the boy. Or it was ignoring him, but it was too unlikely that he would simply be kind enough to let him live to tell other people what had happened there. The thing moved lazily to the floor below and played with a matchbox. It didn't exist yet when it was born.

Soon it got tired of the sparks and decided it wanted to see something bigger. The thing lit the penultimate match in the box and dropped it on the tablecloth. She lit the last match and decided to leave it at the foot of the ladder.

Then he decided to release the gas hose and keep it as a souvenir of his little game. And that's when Soonyoung realized that God didn't give a shit about him.

  
  
  
  
  



	2. First contact.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hmmmm hi, I hope you enjoy this chapter :D

Snowflakes slowly swirled in the air before settling into the black sea that was Kwon Soonyoung's hair.

The seventeen-year-old boy really didn't care much about them, but he was torn between finding them delicately beautiful or hating them for being so fragile. Beauty and fragility meant nothing in a world like that, and they definitely wouldn't save him when everything went wrong... And he feared that that moment would be more than near, fast as an avalanche.

He didn't like to go out during the winter; the weather always seemed dark and propitious for cursed things to drag him away from civilization and then do something with his guts. Moreover, the cold wind threatened to wipe out the remnants of his health and leave him even more helpless than he was.

Even if he had been hiding for four years, he still hadn't been able to learn to use guns properly - as if he had at least got one. Soonyoung knew that, until that moment, he was being a lucky little kid and knew that it wouldn't last forever.

And it was for that very reason that he was descending that narrow alley of slippery stones that had become familiar to him in the past months. Soonyoung knew that path just as he knew the pattern of strange symbols that ran along his back as if they were notched.

He slammed lightly on the only door that existed there and waited about half a second until it was opened by a little lady hiding among mountains of dirty clothes and shawls. She offered a toothless smile which, together with the smell, made Soonyoung feel slightly nauseous.

"I thought you weren't coming today."

"I said I would. I always come." The boy answered in a murmur. Ever since he understood what the Sight was, Soonyoung always turned to that woman to buy things that might help him save his ass when everything went wrong. Soonyoung knew he needed to learn how to use weapons, but first, he needed to know what kind of thing he was fighting against.

"Great," she seemed genuinely pleased, but Soonyoung knew it was only because of the money. She never asked him anything, and even if she did, there would be no answer. Not one given by Soonyoung, anyway. "Come in before you catch a cold."

Soonyoung would sincerely be thankful if he fell ill and died for good, but remained silent as he followed her into the decrepit house that seemed about to disassemble upon them. However, all of his body hair painfully rose under his dark clothing as soon as he passed the threshold, and he stopped.

"There's something here," Soonyoung squeaked, taking a few steps back. At that moment, he regretted spending so much time being inert instead of learning how to use a blade.

"There's nothing here, silly," the old woman laughed softly and sat in an armchair whose upholstery seemed about to swallow her.

Soonyoung narrowed his eyes and scanned the room with his gaze. He knew that there was something there, and he couldn't understand why she would try to hide it from him. The old woman was aware that Soonyoung had the Sight, and he was quite sure that she had it, too. There was no reason to lie, mainly because Soonyoung could help her get rid of whatever it was.

"Hmm." that's all Soonyoung said and let his right-hand slip gently down to the hunting knife handle that he carried tightly around his waist.

"Sit down, Soonyoung." The woman pointed to a chair that seemed unable to bear even her own weight. He sat on the end, both out of fear and because he was ready to get up and surrender at any moment. "Jihoon, bring some tea for our guest."

Jihoon.

He'd never heard that name in his life before, and he really started to think that that old lady was going crazy. Soonyoung didn't want any tea, Soonyoung just wanted the book and the roots he'd paid dearly for.

"No need, I just..."

"Hurry up, Jihoon." the old lady interrupted. If God existed, he'd know the boy would rather have a shot than putting something from her in his mouth, but apparently, he didn't have much choice.

Soon a messed-up brown-haired boy who appeared to be at most fifteen years old broke out of a place that could be the kitchen, bringing two cups full of something steaming.

Soonyoung's body hair shivered strongly at that time and even hurt him. The grip on the knife handle increased, and he stood up, making his eyes narrowed.

"What is he?" He grunted, feeling like snarling at that thing.

"My grandson, isn't it obvious?" the old woman laughed as if there was some resemblance between the two. Soonyoung didn't know what was going on, but he was sure the boy should have created false memories for her.

"Don't be rude, Grandma." the boy smiled and revealed pointed teeth. "Forgive her for that, age usually does things like that to people."

"As long as she only gives me the things for which I paid dearly, I don't mind," Soonyoung answered. There was something... inappropriate about that boy, and he didn't want to find out what it was.

"You shouldn't mess with people," Jihoon snapped his tongue for his grandmother and started poking around the shelves that filled the walls. After some time that seemed infinite, he finally found what labeled with Soonyoung's name and delivered it to him.

Soonyoung noticed that he hadn't touched the rowan directly. However, he didn't notice Jihoon's gaze resting eagerly on the jugular pulsating strongly with bittersweet blood on his neck.

Yet, nothing stopped him from running like a demon when he left there, anxious to get rid of those cursed shivers and the cursed presence of Jihoon.

◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌

_ Strigoi. _

The only thing Soonyoung was sure about them was that they were blood drinkers. All the other things he'd heard about them were a bunch of folk bullshit that didn't make any sense and seemed to be inspired by some stupid movie.

Even writing that word seemed wrong to him. As if, somehow, the devil was too old to even be named in languages as young as human languages.

Soonyoung wasn't sure if the thing that had visited his house four years ago was one of them. It could have been anything, in the end, and he would never know. He hoped he would never know. After that night, all Soonyoung did was try to forget. He tried and tried, but he could never - and maybe he didn't want to - leave his family behind.

It was so unfair that he had survived, it was so unfair that he now had to live alone as a destitute person, it was unfair that they even recognized him as a human being. If anyone had to be spared that night, it should have been everyone else, but not him. Soonyoung was too coward to live.

The place where he lived at that moment was a constant reminder of all the things he had lost, even if there was nothing physical to cling to. Hiding in an abandoned house was to remember at every moment what had brought him to that point.

However, Soonyoung drew.

On the walls, on the ceiling, on sheets of paper. Wherever possible, Soonyoung would draw the faces of his parents and his brother when they were still a unit. If he drew enough, he could bring them back to life, make them real, just like in the myth where the Goddess transformed a statue into a woman because of the desperate cries of a man in love.

But, as much as he couldn't stop drawing, it had been some time since he began to stop believing in that. He knew it was time to stop waiting and exchange his colored pencils for weapons. He knew it was time to take revenge for his dear family, and he knew that lying around wishing he was dead in their place would not help.

And he also knew that just recognizing that was not enough.

Soonyoung's wounds were still open, and he was already ridiculously tired, but he could no longer bear to live with uncertainty and fear. He hated that his life had been reduced to a struggle for survival, and he hated that he could not have a normal life like everyone else his age.

For hell's sake, Soonyoung would like to have his parents to comfort him at that moment, as harsh sobs shook his body and made his head hurt. What the hell, why couldn't he bring them back? Why couldn't he trade his life for theirs?

Soonyoung felt pathetic and did not know how pathetic he could still become. Why couldn't he stop whining? Why was it so hard not to hate himself even more?

Soonyoung didn't know for sure when he ended up sleeping, but it didn't matter. Things were always like that, in the end, it wasn't like there was any surprise. He always cried himself to sleep and knew it would never change unless he could get over it and focus on his revenge.

Unless he died.


	3. Found.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiiiii i kinda forgot I needed to update but here I am KSHSKSKSKS I hope you like it :3

_ In Romanian mythology, Strigoi is the tormented souls of the dead who come out of their graves. Some of Strigoi's abilities include invisibility and the ability to transform into an animal. They are called immortal vampires and have two hearts. _

_ Ways to become a Strigoi: _

  1. _Being the seventh child of the same sex in a family;_
  2. _To lead a life in sin;_
  3. _To die without getting married;_
  4. _Suicide;_
  5. _For execution or perjury;_
  6. _Being cursed by a witch._



_ To kill a Strigoi, you need... _

Soonyoung's eyes opened in a burst and blinked angrily towards the light that leaked through the broken glass. The lack of windows and curtains was just another thing that made him hate that house even more.

But it was not his fault if, according to the human world, he was still underage and could not work. It wasn't his fault if his house had burned down with his family, his papers, and all the evidence that one day he had even existed inside it. It was not his fault that he had given for dead while hiding behind garbage cans and begging for food in the less threatening alleys because, even though he was more afraid of what was supernatural, the real world could still be very cruel with an abandoned kid. Soonyoung was not to blame if his damn life had been totally ruined before it really started.

However, Soonyoung knew he shouldn't start whining so soon, or he wouldn't be able to do anything else, and that would be a lost day. He sat down carefully and stroked his bony rib, which at that moment was terribly painful. He had slept on the book he was reading and now had a profound mark on his thin skin, which seemed about to burst.

It wasn't hard for him to end up hurt like that in the end; he hadn't been properly fed for four years and was visibly underweight, so any extra pressure seemed to be enough to break him. However, that didn't matter much.

The boy marked himself with some ancient symbols of protection that he had discovered in his numerous readings, left the pile of old clothes and blankets that served as his mattress, and headed for the dilapidated bathroom. Honestly, that place didn't even look that abandoned.

Soonyoung had fixed everything he could and did his best to keep everything organized, even though he couldn't afford to buy a glass or pay for electricity. In addition to worldly things, he had also cast two spells of protection around the property and several roots of rowan stuck in cracked pots that were willing to trace a pentagram all over the house.

At one time or another, Soonyoung would get some temporary work or mow lawns and carry out repairs for old ladies who lived in the area but, most of the time, he was just unemployed. He had already considered becoming a hunter a few times, but how could he guarantee that he could kill creatures invisible to human eyes if he didn't even know how to fight? 

Firstly, he needed weapons. All he had were a few hunting knives, books, and a food stock that didn't seem to be enough to get through the winter that seemed the worst in ten years. It was desperate to know that if he didn't get a job soon, he would spend all those cold months slowly languishing because of hunger. It was also at those moments when he felt extremely ridiculous for spending money on books about blood-drinking demons since all that knowledge had never served to fill his belly and didn't even seem real, either.

Soonyoung had already seen some demons and heard about some witches, but nothing was like the things he read. He was becoming quite sure that it was pure fiction, but there was something inside him that forced him to continue wasting his meager savings in search of something that he had not yet been able to unravel. Maybe it was just the fear of ending up in another fire, but he didn't understand what relationship fire could have with  _ Strigoi  _ or whatever the name of that thing was. 

The only clue he had was the memories stuck in his mind, but they were not at all clear about what kind of thing would have caused that fire. All he could do was trust his instincts, and he was still thinking about that when he turned the register, letting the cold water spill against his back. Soonyoung rubbed himself vigorously two or three times and rushed out of there before he ended up freezing to death, as the snow was still falling mercilessly outside, and he could feel the gusts of cold wind calmly invading the enclosure.

There would certainly be no one outside because of the weather, so he decided to go out into the woods behind the house and train some knife throwers. It was high time he learned how to use it properly, and he would never be able to learn how to use bigger weapons if he couldn't handle even one knife.

He got dressed as soon as he could and ate half of a cereal bar as breakfast before packing up to go out. He stuck some rowan sticks in the black overcoat pocket and grabbed a few extra bars for lunch before deciding he could eat snow if he felt thirsty.

The only sound present was of his steps crushing the snow heavily, and he soon concluded that everything should be all right in the surroundings. The few shivers that went up his back were those caused by the cold he felt.

Soonyoung had no idea what he was doing as he chose a log that seemed to be about twenty feet away, but he hoped that was enough for a start. It didn't take long for him to position himself in the way he thought was right, and then he threw the knife at once, as it wouldn't give him tips if he spent more time staring.

That and the subsequent pitches were shameful, and if anyone ever asked him about them, Soonyoung would pretend they never happened. He had no idea what he was doing wrong, but the blade seemed to lose its strength before it even reached halfway, and then it would fall off without even touching anything. Soonyoung knew he wouldn't become a professional overnight, but it was frustrating, to say the least, to not be able to make a straight shot.

On top of everything else, he was sedentary. He was totally soaked in sweat before the fifth pitch and soon let his overcoat fall at his feet, even though he couldn't feel his fingers anymore because of the sharp cold. The pierced sweater did a terrible job of protecting his body, but he couldn't afford to care about that at the time, so he only threw the knife again with all the anger that was in him.

After countless attempts, he finally managed to make the blade stick firmly into the branch he was aiming at, even though it was quite out of his exact target. His breath came out in warm gusts, and inspiring made his lungs hurt miserably. Perhaps he should invest in physical training, too, or he would end up dying because he did not have a decent lung capacity.

Soonyoung no longer knew whether he was shivering from cold, fatigue, or hunger, but it didn't matter. Soon, he repositioned himself and grunted in disgust at having thrown the knife on a too crooked trajectory that had made him lose sight of it as soon as it passed the target. Waiting for the knife to come back to him gladly would be useless, so he rescued the overcoat from the ground and ran to where he believed it could be.

The snow slowed his steps and made everything even more complicated. He had no idea how long it had been since he had been there, but the sky had darkened in a way that left him half distressed, and the snow was falling again. Soonyoung had to walk fast, or he would end up losing one of his only weapons to an imbecile blizzard.

The boy crouched down and carefully studied the ground, looking specifically for the lead-colored handle, which would be much easier to see in the middle of the whiteness than the silver blade. The chills were running through his body more intensely at that moment, but he tried not to pay too much attention to it. It was cold as hell, and there were never any strange things in that part of town, which was a crucial factor in choosing what abandoned property he would claim for himself.

Soonyoung cried softly when the chills seemed to get even worse and he just wanted to run into the house, but he couldn't; that blade had cost him too much to simply lose it that way. 

Soonyoung ended up getting further and further into the punished woods, trying to understand how his knife might have flown so far if there was even wind to carry it. He was so distracted by those questions that he didn't realize when his cold sneezes turned into an omen, and the omen turned into the roar of the hairy, stinking creature that jumped on him. 

By pure reflection, Soonyoung screamed. The putrid smell of that thing on him made him feel like vomiting, but he forced the bitter material to remain in his stomach as he rolled to the side and tried to stand.

That would be a great time to guess where his knife was, but Soonyoung knew well that fate hated him too much to make things that easy. He screamed again when the thing sank its claws into his shoulder and kicked him as hard as it could, but it didn't seem to have had any effect.

The warm blood soon soaked his arm, but he didn't have much time to think while he tried to let go so he wouldn't have ripped it off for good. It took a few moments for him to remember that there was rowan with him, and he tried hard enough to stop shaking enough to squeeze it out of his pocket.

He didn't want to stop to think about the fact that that thing shouldn't even have gotten that close because of the rowan, or else he would've ended up freaking out. Another wave of pain swept through his body as its disgusting claws descended on his left cheek, and at that moment he managed to shove the branch into the ocular cavity of the thing and turned it with force.

The creature screamed loudly and walked away, just a bit, enough for Soonyoung to drag himself back. He had no way of escaping from that thing without ending up taking it to the middle of the street, but he was already running out of options and becoming even more desperate. If he didn't act fast, he'd end up getting killed.

"You're useless," the wind carried Lee Jihoon's acidic voice to Soonyoung as the boy spun Soonyoung's lost knife between his fingers. That really was all that was missing, and the boy  _ knew _ he couldn't handle two freaks at once. "Just be quiet and don't get in my way."

Before Soonyoung could think of any answer, Jihoon threw himself on the thing and struck it repeatedly with Soonyoung's knife. Maybe he wanted to kill the monster so he could himself tear Soonyoung apart right away.

The creature's winches and growls became stronger and Soonyoung began trying to penetrate the carcass of it with all the rowans he had with him. As much as he wanted Jihoon to disappear, Soonyoung knew he would be the target again when the creature got rid of him.

One of the branches broke inside the back of the thing and distracted it long enough for Jihoon to stab it in the neck repeatedly, soon resulting in the putrid head and squirting black blood to roll over the filthy snow until it stopped at Soonyoung's feet. A wave of nausea shook his fragile body and, before he could try to hold on, bitter vomit forced its way through the boy's throat.

"Gross," it was all Jihoon said before he cleaned the knife in his pants and then threw it towards Soonyoung. It was the human boy's turn to squeak and fall sitting in the snow while he tried to deflect from the blade, almost suffocating with the rest of the bile that was still stuck in his throat.

"What's wrong with you?!" He inquired exasperatedly, picking up the knife before Jihoon picked it up again.

"I'm the one who should ask you this. What kind of incompetent are you?" Jihoon mocked. "You're lucky I was taking a walk, or you'd certainly be dead now."

"I wouldn't have needed your help if you hadn't stolen my knife," Soonyoung growled, trembling with bitterness, and stood up. 

Jihoon laughed low as he saw the hatred and contempt in the eyes of the tallest one and then leaned a couple of steps closer.

"I don't need to steal your things and it's not my fault if you shoot worse than a blind man. I did you a favor by bringing it back to you and stopping you from dying, so show more gratitude."

"Idiot," Soonyoung grunted and didn't know if he should stay there or if he should go home. He didn't want to end up being followed by that thing that he didn't even know what it was, but also had his face and fingers numb from the cold. Surely it would end up getting very bad if Soonyoung continued outside. "What do you want here?"

"The usual, just taking a walk to stretch his legs," Jihoon smiled and Soonyoung was able to see his slightly pointed premolars. He couldn't remember anything that had that anatomy, but he knew Jihoon was not a human being at all.

"Well, go take a walk somewhere else. Away from me, preferably," Soonyoung demanded and brought the knife to his chest.

"Soonyoung, right?" Jihoon continued as if nothing in the world bothered him, even though he was annoyed by the stench of all that vomit on the ground. "I don't think we were introduced properly. You were in a hurry and I was being made a slave by my grandmother."

"I don't care about you or your grandmother. I don't know what the fuck you are, but stay away from me."

"What do you mean you don't know what I am?" Jihoon frowned, "I'm just a boy, just like you."

"Don't play dumb," Soonyoung was in the mood to spit in Jihoon's face, but he didn't. He wouldn't give something of himself to that thing that could very well be used to track him down. "I know you're not human."

_ And neither are you _ , Jihoon thought debauchedly but did not verbalize.

"Really?" That's what Jihoon said in the end. "Well, believe what you want, as long as you learn to throw knives right. Your aim is humiliatingly deplorable."

Snorting, Soonyoung went through his pockets and then threw his last rowan branch against Jihoon's face, who only hissed and opened a scary little smile as he walked away.

"Miserable," he grumbled aloud enough for Soonyoung to hear and then smashed the branch under his heavy boots. "Perhaps you're not as dumb as I thought,  _ human _ , but you're still extremely incompetent."

"Leave me alone, I didn't ask for your advice and opinions!"

"As you wish, but something tells me we'll meet again. Improve your shitty skills by then, and maybe I'll tell you what I am since you seem so curious."

The knuckles Soonyoung was using to hold the knife were white, so much strength and anger that he was using at that moment. If he met Jihoon again, he'd  _ kill _ him and that wasn't even a bluff.

Jihoon waved to Soonyoung like he was waving to a schoolmate and then vanished into the parched trees, finally giving the taller the chance to leave and get rid of that awful smell that was messing his stomach even more.

He ran back home and got under the freezing jet of the shower, as he needed to remove from himself everything that that cursed encounter had impregnated in his body. He felt totally destabilized and dirty, and as much as Jihoon had saved him, he could only feel the anger of it.

Soonyoung was very angry that he had been stuck outside for longer than he intended, as the blizzard had intensified even more while he was returning home and had almost buried him right there. His muscles were weakened by the effort he put in to get back to the house and he felt he could vomit again at any moment.

After his bath, Soonyoung glued an extra layer of cardboard over the broken glass panes and sat down in the middle of the blankets and books. He tried to make a clumsy bandage on his shoulder and face, giving thanks to heaven that he hadn't hurt himself as much as he thought he had. Apart from one of the butchers on his shoulder, the rest were just superficial wounds.

If Soonyoung went a few days without moving his arm abruptly, he would soon be brand new.

Not having electricity was just another one in the various items within the topic "Things Soonyoung hated"; he would spend the night reading by candlelight, as he always did, and fearing to set fire to all things and make his own situation even worse.

His life certainly could not get any worse, but he avoided thinking about it in order not to attract even more negative energies than those already considered as family.

Soonyoung knew that certain things existed and he had even confirmed it with his own eyes, but as he read, he could not help thinking about how ridiculous it all looked. It was easy to believe that everything that had happened four years ago and that very day was nothing but plaguing dreams and that that fire had happened spontaneously. However, this hypothesis did not explain the strange marks that appeared on his back that night and he was afraid to find out what they meant and it also did not explain the burning of the bile that scorched his throats at that very moment.

Soonyoung read a few more pages before blowing out the candle and lying there staring at the ceiling. He needed to get his life together urgently or get himself killed as soon as possible. It wasn't as if he really wanted to kill himself, but Soonyoung didn't even exist. It wasn't like anyone was gonna miss him, and it wasn't like he had connections in this world either.

He knew he shouldn't give himself up to that kind of thinking, but it was hard to stay optimistic after being attacked the way he had been earlier, bearing in mind quite clearly that he hadn't been able to defend himself. Soonyoung just wanted the before back.

Those thoughts went through his mind for a few more minutes before he finally slipped into the world of sleep and dreamed.

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_ "Soonyoung, right? They're talking about you, you know." _

_ The boy turned on his own feet while trying to find the owner of that rough, melodious voice, but found nothing but shadows around him. _

_ "I heard you have the Vision and I made a mistake, four years ago. Come on, I know you know what I'm talking about. Don't make a fool of yourself." _

_ "I never would have let you live if I'd known you were there, but I wonder how you managed to mask your smell so well. I bet you felt it while they were dying. I bet it hurt on you, or not so much because you kept hiding instead of trying to help them." _

_ Soonyoung wanted to scream; what the fucking chance would a thirteen-year-old boy have against a... a... thing? What could he have done, anyway? _

_ "You're a coward, Kwon Soonyoung," the voice went on. "You love to keep this 'I don't care' and 'I'm gonna end with you' pose, but you can't even get over your dead little parents. You can't even hold a knife properly. You're a good-for-nothing, and you know what I do with good-for-nothing? I make them beg for death, and it's no different with you." _

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Several days had passed, but that damned speech was still impregnated in Soonyoung's mind. He couldn't even tell if it was just a nightmare or if someone really had gotten into his head. How could the thing that had killed his family know that he didn't know how to throw knives?

However, as much as the idea had crossed his mind a few times, he didn't think Jihoon could be responsible. The smaller had already had several opportunities to kill him in the last few days if he wanted to, and the voices were way too different.

But he could still have some active glamour spell every time they met, so that took Soonyoung back to square one.

Soonyoung was trying very hard not to think about it while he finished removing a handful of snow from the driveway of two old ladies' house but, well, he was the inventor of the concept of failure. He was shaking and he knew it wasn't cold. Maybe he should blame it on hunger or...

Hell, he needed more training. His pitches had gone from terrible to acceptable, and in a while, they might be good. However, time was something he did not have and he knew it well. Perhaps he should move to a desert on another continent because then it would be harder to find him and he could gain enough time to develop remotely decent fighting skills.

The air was extremely dry and it irritated his nose, leaving him red and scratching. Dry enough to make him wonder if it was natural. However, before he could contemplate any further, the plumpest lady called him in for a snack. For a few seconds, he considered refusing, but since when has Soonyoung not eaten anything but cereal bars? He couldn't even remember.

Within a few minutes, he had washed his calloused hands and was sitting timidly at the table, accompanied by the two ladies.

"It's been a while since I've seen you around, Soonyoung, is everything all right with you?"

"Yes, Miss Lim, I've just been a little busy."

"Sure, sure, young men have a lot to do. But don't forget we like you, boy."

Maybe those two were the only point of normality in his life, the only thing that made him believe that humans were actually real, even with everything lurking outside. The little TV buzzed monotonously with the morning news while the two chatted quietly, without Soonyoung paying attention to either of them.

However, seeing a street well known to him with a certain house on fire was able to hold his full attention in a matter of milliseconds. Soonyoung felt as if he was having  _ déjà vu _ from so long before, but still, everything was different.

_ "The fire department arrived on the place in about twenty minutes, but the fire seems far from being contained. It was also informed that there was no one in the house supposedly abandoned at the time the fire started, although the neighbors claim that a boy of medium stature and dark hair used to spend the nights there. Stay tuned for more news soon," _ the reporter announced boredly as if she didn't care. And maybe she didn't care at all, since it wasn't her life flowing before her eyes for the second time.

The color had flowed out of Soonyoung's face as he listened to all that, as he watched his hell repeat itself without being able to do anything to stop it. He could do nothing but feel powerless. It was hard to even think while everything he had worked hard to build in recent years burned to the ground and crumbled right before his eyes.

"Are you all right, Soonyoung?" Miss Lim asked when she noticed that he had stopped eating and was too white.

"I-I am, I just remembered that I need to hurry."

"It's okay, honey, just remember to visit us more often, when you can."

"I will," he forced a little smile the way he could and got up quickly before he practically ran away.

He needed air and he needed to face reality.

It wasn't just a dream, someone had really tried to kill him.

After years, Soonyoung had finally been found.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, please let me know if there is something fucked up and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	4. Deal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiii I hope you enjoy it

Soonyoung's hands trembled violently inside the coat pockets while trying to force his brain to function, without success.

He had lost everything. Everything.

Again.

All Soonyoung wanted was to be able to run somewhere, but where would he run if the only house he had was burning down at that exact moment? He didn't know anyone who could help him and he didn't even have enough money, since most parts of his savings had also burned along with the rest of his belongings.

All the books, clothes, and memories he had were nothing but ashes at that moment, and thinking about it was suffocating him and crushing his chest so hard that he felt he could die at any moment. All Soonyoung had after that was his body clothes, a bundle of money bills stuck in his pocket that was not pierced, and a sharp knife. And that was it.

The weight on his shoulders felt bigger than ever and he couldn't fight that force that pushed him down, so he dropped to his knees while gasping heavily. His stomach shook vertiginously and threatened to put itself all out while Soonyoung struggled to keep it in place. He only wanted to stop shaking so much but, apparently, it was impossible.

The worst part was to realize that it all certainly didn't happen out of anywhere; the thing for sure had been watching him for a long time until he decided to act and talk to him before trying to kill him. And, for a very short time, he hadn't succeeded.

Thinking about it was too terrifying and made him feel even more like running to hide but, first of all, where would he go? Soonyoung couldn't dare to come back and he couldn't stay on the street either, or he would end up freezing to death during the dawn before anything else could happen.

Soonyoung didn't know for sure how long he was kneeling there until he finally managed to control himself a little bit and then threw out the tears from his cheeks before he got up. To the unhappiness of the thing, Soonyoung was tough in the same proportion he was a crybaby. He just didn't know exactly what to do.

Soonyoung walked randomly for a never-ending time and only stopped when the hunger was too tight to bear; he had no idea where he was, but it didn't matter much when he would have nowhere to go back to. Looking around, Soonyoung was soon able to find a dirty looking establishment, but which seemed cheap enough to fit in his pocket. He didn't need to think twice before entering it and ask for anything hot that would be able to keep him standing for a few hours.

Soonyoung sat next to a wall with the faded painting and let himself crumble against it, sighing heavily from time to time. From what he had observed, he was the youngest person inside that place, and, somehow, the others seemed even more miserable than him. Maybe the world of humans was as cruel as the world he lived in, after all.

Within a few minutes, a plate and a chipped mug were placed in front of the boy and he started eating at the same instant. It would be great if he could make his mind quiet and stay blank, but he couldn't.

The smoke spiraling towards the sky kept dancing before his eyes every time he blinked, not to mention that soon it would be night and he still didn't know what to do. Maybe he should ask the Lim ladies to shelter him, but he didn't want to put them at risk because of his presence.

He would have to manage on his own.

Soonyoung was ready to get up and walk again aimlessly when all his hairs painfully stood up under his clothes, making him gasp low. That was all that was missing.

"I heard about what happened," Jihoon's voice reached him just as he passed the door. "And please don't make a scene."

However, making scenes was not what Soonyoung had in mind, anyway. All he did, in fact, was to run out in a hurry, hoping that it would mislead Jihoon and he wouldn't find him again.

No matter how much he told himself that that kid couldn't have been responsible for everything, a part of his brain clung firmly to that possibility. He didn't know who and what Jihoon was and, if he had found him at that exact moment, he could have been prowling from afar without being noticed, too.

"Why do you have to be like that?" Jihoon's acidic voice floated to Soonyoung again as soon as he stopped to catch his breath and almost made him have a heart attack. What the hell...? "It's useless trying to run away from me, I'm way faster than you."

"What do you want from me?" Soonyoung asked, angry and tired. All he wanted was to be alone but, apparently, that boy would never allow it.

"Make a proposal that might be interesting for you," Jihoon said and pulled Soonyoung into an alley before leaning back on the dirty, graffiti-filled wall.

"I'm not interested."

"You cannot decide before you hear what I have to say," Jihoon shook his index finger in denial and then smiled gloomily. "I know who burned your house down."

That certainly was enough to get Soonyoung attention instantly, but he showed nothing but boredom and fatigue. It wouldn't be smart to let Jihoon read his expressions when he had never been so fragile.

"And I also heard some things about you. It would be... somewhat interesting if we could help each other."

"I still don't see where you're going with this."

"Your blood, Soonyoung. Give me some of your blood and I'll help you with your revenge." Jihoon decided to go straight to the point and kept his eyes fixed on Soonyoung's.

"Do you think I'm an idiot?!" the taller said as soon as Jihoon shut up. "I'm not giving you shit, that's just an excuse to kill me or turn me into whatever shit you are."

"I wouldn't ask so kindly if I intended to kill you, asshole." Jihoon rolled his eyes.

"Will you use it to track me down, then? There are billions of human beings out there who can steal the blood, I'm not giving mine away."

You really are an idiot," a little laugh escaped Jihoon's lips. "I know there are billions of human beings, but I don't know what makes you believe you're like them. You've had the Vision forever, right?" 

"I don't see how that can be any of your business," he snorted.

"Okay, so you do. Come on, Soonyoung, if you cooperate with me, not only I will help you in your revenge, but I will also give you a roof under which to stay. I know you don't want to stay on the street and winter is getting tight."

Jihoon had a good point but, as much as everything seemed extremely tempting, Soonyoung only felt more and more suspicious. None of it seemed to make any sense.

"How can you be so sure about the identity of who tried to kill me? How do I know it wasn't you?"

"I can present you with evidence if that's the case. Does that mean you're thinking about it?"

"I don't trust you," Soonyoung said instead of answering his question.

"Well, you'd be very stupid if you did," Jihoon shrugged. "Come on, make your decision quickly. It will start to get dark in a few hours and the murderer of your family will not be your only concern if you continue on the streets."

One more point for Jihoon. He still remembered clearly when he was attacked in the woods and knew that there should probably be more creatures like that or even worse lurking.

Considering that Jihoon always seemed to meet him when he was in the mood, maybe giving his blood would end up making no difference. On top of everything else, Jihoon seemed to know a lot more about Soonyoung than the boy knew about himself, and that made him extremely uncomfortable.

In the end, Soonyoung could end up dying anyway: he would be found by something or would freeze to death if he stayed outside, Jihoon could kill him if he followed him home. But on the street, he would have to deal with several things, while at home he could deal only with Jihoon.

The smaller was having a bit of fun with all the doubt that emanated from Soonyoung, since it made his smell even stronger, but decided it would help him decide a little faster.

"I have as many reasons to want him dead as you do," he started. "He killed my mother. Look at my face who is willing to help who killed my fucking mother."

"Do you have a mother?"

"Everybody has a mother, you idiot."

"You are not like everyone else," Soonyoung rolled his eyes and decided he didn't want to think about it anymore. "Go away."

"Good luck to last longer than tonight, then," Jihoon faced him as if it was just a big inconvenience and left the alley. He knew that Soonyoung would end up going after him, anyway, and he was not in the mood to beg.

It took about four minutes for Soonyoung to reach him, totally panting and already sorry. He hated that thing for having left him so without options that he needed Jihoon's help.

"If I get in, will you teach me how to kill?" he questioned when he managed to catch his breath.

"I can teach you anything you want," Jihoon answered, holding Soonyoung's gaze until the boy looked away.

Then Soonyoung stretched his hand. Jihoon shook it.

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Jihoon actually lived in a real house, Soonyoung noticed as he followed him through a small stone trail that ended up in a brick construction that didn't seem to be about to collapse on top of them.

"I don't know what you eat, so worry about it alone," it was the only thing Jihoon said after locking the door and throwing the keys on the coffee table.

"I can eat the same as you," Soonyoung mumbled, feeling extremely out of place there. As much as they had a deal, he didn't want Jihoon to find any reason to demand something from him later.

"No, you can't, because I don't eat."

"And how do you live?"

"Do I seem to be alive?" The smaller threw a hard look that left Soonyoung deeply scared of where he would have gotten himself, but he soon started laughing. "Stop making this face, my heart is beating. I just don't eat things that humans think are pleasant."

"I think I want to cancel our agreement," Soonyoung said seriously, taking some steps back.

"Too bad, but you can't go back now. You can do whatever you want here, but if you bring that rowan-ass shit inside, I'm gonna shove it in your large intestine."

"You forget that I also know how to defend myself," a humorless laugh escaped Soonyoung's lips while he followed a narrow corridor, which ended up in a tight kitchen with no sign of use.

"Of course you know, so much so that he almost died on our last meeting," Jihoon replied as he watched Soonyoung turn around and climb the stairs.

Soonyoung came across three doors and Jihoon stuck himself in front of him before he could open the first one.

"In my room, only I enter," he said, "You can have the one next door."

"Okay."

"And about clothes... Make sure you fit in mine, for now."

Soonyoung wanted to wrinkle his nose and refuse the offer, but his body would rot if he kept wearing that same dirty clothes for the rest of his days.

"How old are you?" Soonyoung ended up asking while watching Jihoon walk away.

"Much older than you. Now get in your damn room and make yourself at home. Tomorrow we can take care of our business... Hoshi."

"Hoshi?"

"It's your name from now on. The whole Other Side knows a Kwon Soonyoung and I'm not in the mood to explain to anyone or anything what you are doing here. So, from now on, Kwon Soonyoung no longer exists."

"Okay, I..."

"Good night, Hoshi," Jihoon cut and entered his own room.

However, Soonyoung did not obey him. The boy tested the third door but discovered it was locked, so he went downstairs again in search of a bathroom. With luck, he could finally take a hot bath after so much time.

Fortunately, there was a towel there and he wouldn't have to deal with Jihoon again that day, so he undressed quickly and entered the box. He would like his body to calm down and stop reacting that way because of Jihoon's unnatural existence since they would have to live together for a long time. However, he doubted that it would really stop.

Soonyoung didn't want to abuse too much, so he tried to be as quick as possible before running back to his room and turning it over in search of blankets. As he had imagined, there was no piece of clothing there, so he did his best to dry himself before lying completely naked under the covers and hoped not to get too cold during the night.

It was strange to lie on a real bed after so long and it had an almost immediate effect on his body, which ended up falling asleep before he could even think whether he would like to fall asleep or not.

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The marks on Soonyoung's back burned his skin to the point of making him arch his back and gasp in despair. It looked like he was being whipped with a hot whip and it also seemed that it would never end. What a nice way to wake up in the morning.

Soonyoung bit his lower lip hard while trying not to scream, but ended up crying softly when a new wave of pain went through his body. He just wanted it to stop, but he knew it wouldn't be that easy.

It was almost as if those things had a pattern to bother with; it always happened once a month and lasted for a few days. It always hurt more in the lethal hours before dawn.

Another squeak of pain escaped Soonyoung's lips and warm tears burned his eyes as he panting even more than before. He was sure it never hurt that much and, for some reason, believed that Jihoon's proximity should have something to do with it.

"What's happening?" The door opened in a burst and the only thing Soonyoung did was ask himself if he hadn't locked it the day before. He even tried to open his mouth to answer, but Jihoon's presence so close only made his situation worse and made him sweat cold with the stabs his stomach gave.

As he got no answer, Jihoon approached the bed and threw Soonyoung's blankets on the floor, genuinely concerned about all those grumblings. However, he stood when he finally managed to see the marks on the boy's back, because he recognized each one of those symbols.

He knew that Hoshi was not human, but he also didn't imagine that he was one of them, mainly because he was able to use magic but, before he could conclude any reasoning, he was pushed away and Soonyoung covered himself again.

"Your presence here is making it hurt more, go away," Soonyoung asked in a weak voice and Jihoon didn't know what to do. It was kind of obvious that Soonyoung had no idea what was happening to him, but Jihoon didn't think he was ready to know anyway.

"Let me see your back," he demanded, ignoring Soonyoung's request. It was as if those marks were an oil painting of his, except for a single detail.

Fire.

"I already said no!" Hoshi replied angrily. "Get out of here."

With hatred, Jihoon obeyed. Stirred up a scared and sore puppy would bring nothing good, after all, and he needed Soonyoung to trust him. But, even so, his mind was still racing while trying to understand how Soonyoung could be one of them and still have magic running in his veins.

Jihoon lay down on the carpet of the room and kept spinning a red crystal between his fingers while waiting for Soonyoung to recover. He wondered if that firepower could pass to him in case he consumed the boy's blood, not so human.

The sun had already finished rising when Soonyoung finally appeared, wearing the same pants as the day before and a shirt that seemed too tight on his shoulders under his overcoat. He was embarrassed because Jihoon had seen him without clothes and crying like a baby, but the only thing he could do was pretend that nothing had happened.

"Shall we start now?" Soonyoung asked quietly.

"Good morning to you too," Jihoon said. It was terrifying how quiet and restful he looked, the complete opposite of Soonyoung. The younger seemed to have come out of a horror movie. "It depends on what you mean by start. The part about teaching you how to kill or...?"

"This one," he replied quickly because he wasn't ready to let Jihoon get close enough to draw blood from him yet.

"Hm, right, but first I need to see what you already know and whatnot, all that shit. Feel free to show me what you want."

Soonyoung nodded and stood in the middle of the room without knowing what to do until Jihoon finally stood up and guided him to the back porch. Once there, he drew a target on a tree that was about thirty meters away and then perched on the old swing to observe Soonyoung's progress. Jihoon pushed himself once and shrunk his legs under his body, facing the bigger one as if he were rolling too much, to begin with.

"Let's see if you improved this shit of aim," Jihoon commented with disdain and Soonyoung preferred to respond with actions instead of words.

He knew he had improved, but he didn't know what Jihoon's level of demand would be. The first shot was almost perfect and Soonyoung missed the center of the target by a few millimeters, causing Jihoon's eyebrows to arc in surprise.

He knew that kid had potential, but it was shocking to see him not wasting it all to keep crying in the corners.

"I think we need to establish rules of coexistence," Jihoon said while Soonyoung continued the process of throwing the knife, getting it back, and then throwing it again.

"I'm listening."

"Okay, first of all: I don't touch your things and you don't touch mine," Jihoon enumerated in his long fingers. "And each one cleans your own dirt, although it would be good to have a servant."

"Hm, and a good thing would be to limit this intimacy that I never gave you."

"Don't be like that, little thing, we'll be very intimate after we share your blood," Jihoon jumped to the ground and stuck his knee between Soonyoung's legs to force him to tidy up his posture. He laughed with his grumblings and put his hand over his to guide the throw, having a little fun with the situation. "Try it like this, now."

To Soonyoung's disgrace, he managed to hit the center of the target with Jihoon's help, but he felt the displeasure run in waves through his body just by having him so close to him.

"Can't you turn that thing off?" Jihoon ended up asking. "How can we be friends if you are so disgusted with me?"

"Do you think I would be going through this if I could turn it off? It's not my fault if you're still something bad, even if you're helping me to survive."

"You want to be my friend, stop it," Jihoon laughed mockingly and let the sound of Soonyoung's breaths and the knife cutting the air fill the room for an instant. "It would be good if you tried to cooperate for a healthier coexistence."

"I am here out of pure necessity and you know very well that this is impossible." Hoshi walked away and sighed heavily. He was already feeling pain again because of the closeness and that talking was annoying him.

"Because you are unbearable. Try to throw it yourself now."

It took Jihoon a while to be satisfied, even though Soonyoung wasn't seeing any difference between the pitches. Heavy drops of sweat were soaking his hair and his back and, as much as he knew he needed to try harder to reach the point he wanted, he was feeling terribly weak and tired.

"Eat something and then come to the room. I want to charge my part of the deal," Jihoon said in the usual serious tone as if he had never laughed in all his life. He still didn't know what that mark of fire could do to him, but he was willing to find out in practice. "And take a bath, I don't want to lick your sweat."

"What?" Soonyoung's eyes went wide with it, as he definitely didn't want Jihoon licking his skin for any reason.

"How do you think I'm gonna take your blood out, shooting you? I need to bite you." Jihoon rolled his eyes and went in again. As much as he didn't feel like humans, Jihoon hated the cold weather.

Soonyoung was genuinely speechless with that answer and only obeyed him, trying not to think too much about it in order not to end up regretting. He was afraid of what could happen to him if they consummated it, but he was also afraid of what would happen if he didn't.

It was strange to be able to eat at ease without feeling afraid of starving soon after, but Hoshi tried to control himself so as not to end up badly. Soon after, he took the clothes that Jihoon had left on the table and went to the bathroom.

He lost some good moments staring at his own face in the mirror and sighed heavily when he realized that he really had no better choice than that. He didn't think much while cleaning himself and tried to continue without thinking while buttoning the light blue shirt that was too big on him.

When he returned, Jihoon was sitting still in the same place. Soonyoung got shivery in a bad way when he realized that he could be a Strigoi but did not say anything. As long as it didn't kill him, everything was fine.

"Hi," he said in a lint of voice and continued standing where he was.

"Hello. How is it more comfortable for you?" Jihoon asked and stared him up and down momentarily. Soonyoung looked much smaller without that filthy overcoat.

"You're asking me about drinking my blood, I don't think there's any comfort in that," he said nervously and got a little close. "Where will you bite?"

"In the neck, it would be faster, because of the artery. But if it makes you whiny, I can bite your wrist," Jihoon yawned and made room for Soonyoung to sit next to him. "It will hurt more if you remain tense like this."

"How do you expect me not to get tense?" Soonyoung grumbled and dropped his dirty clothes on the floor before he sat down and shrugged his legs close to his chest. "Do as you like, as long as you do it fast and don't make me feel more pain than I already felt today."

"I will try my best. Tilt your head to the other side."

Soonyoung closed his eyes and obeyed, shaking a little when Jihoon's cold fingers pressed his skin in search of the artery. All Jihoon's mockery had gone at that moment and he felt his guts squirming in excitement just thinking of taking blood again after so long, even more knowing that it wasn't just any blood. Normally, Jihoon hated being a parasite, but at the moment he was happy for the chance to turn into something else, into anything but a damn demon.

His fangs closed softly on Hoshi's and waited for a little until he relaxed his muscles again to dare to suck something. Jihoon would like to ask if it was all right, but it would be worse if he removed his fangs just to put them once again.

Before he could control himself, Jihoon passed his arms around Soonyoung's waist and pulled him more against himself.

"Hurry up," Soonyoung sighed and let a yelp of pain escape when the suction started. That was much worse than when he took blood for tests when he was a child, it was worse than when he fell and ended up with bloody knees.

The pressure on his neck was very strange and made him feel sleepy and scared at the same time because he was fully aware that he could really end up dying from it. He expected Jihoon to leave some blood to irrigate his brain, or he would faint within a few minutes.

His head was already looking extremely light and it was tiring just to think about blinking again, so he ended up relaxing more in Jihoon's arms and giving him more access to the artery he wanted so bad.

Jihoon's grip increased a little and he sighed heavily against Soonyoung's skin. It was strange, but he felt extremely human in the midst of it, or maybe it was just easier to perceive the sensations of Soonyoung while they were connected that way.

However, Jihoon knew he was very close to losing control completely, so he forced himself to retract his fangs and get away from Soonyoung. Two points of blood shone where his teeth were previously and he couldn't contain himself before passing his tongue through them and relaxing against the couch, feeling extremely full suddenly.

"Are you all right?" he asked after a long moment in silence.

I don't know," Soonyoung's throat was sore as if he had been hanged but, apart from the reactions his body always had because of the proximity of that demon child, he didn't feel as bad as he expected. "I want to sleep."

"Okay, I'll put you to bed. Thank you."

Soonyoung didn't answer because he was too tired to talk, and didn't complain when he felt Jihoon lifting his body and carrying him up the stairs. It was a relief to know that, in the end, he hadn't been sucked to death. However, he hoped he would never have to do that again.

He felt his body being put to bed and totally relaxed only when he heard the door being closed. After that, his mind plunged into complete darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also today is my bday hehe


	5. Arsonist.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hiii hello again  
> I guess that things will start make sense to you from this chapter, so let me know your thoughts and I hope you enjoy it!

Kwon Soonyoung ended up giving blood to Jihoon on two more occasions after the first time, but honestly, he didn't like it. He always ended up passing out afterward and becoming extremely vulnerable for Jihoon to do whatever he wanted with him, but still, Jihoon had never done anything without informing him that he would do it.

Also, they were hardly barely met outside the training schedule and that strange ritual of blood donation. Jihoon always spent the whole night out and returned in the morning, before Soonyoung woke up, and although he was still stupidly goofy, he was much less unbearable than Soonyoung thought he would be.

However, Soonyoung still didn't like him. He had that feeling that Jihoon was hiding a lot of things from him and didn't even know how to confront him. Soonyoung didn't think he was helping the thing that killed their families, however, because if that was the case, he could have given Soonyoung on his second night there. It was something else and Soonyoung urgently needed to find out what it was, although he wasn't so sure he would be able to on his own.

From time to time, he was able to feel Jihoon's gaze burning him with more intensity than the scars on his back, but he only smiled cynically when he was caught and turned his eyes to another place.

"Good morning," Soonyoung grumbled as he went downstairs and found Jihoon tossed on the carpet, as usual.

"Look alive, sunshine. Let's go out today."

"Where are we going?"

"A date, sweetie." Oh, yes, Jihoon loved tormenting him for his nonexistent experience in any aspect that wasn't surviving. It was funny to see Hoshi blush to his soul, but Jihoon did it mainly because of the smell.

The smell of a shy Soonyoung was a thousand times tastier than that of a normal Soonyoung and Jihoon liked appetizing things.

"Idiot," Soonyoung rolled his eyes and went to look in the closets for something that was not outdated. "You need to get me more food."

"All right, I'll solve it later, but I don't know why you reject me so much. I'm trying, you know."

"I don't care, go straight to the point." It was hard to stand that stupid mood when he was on an empty stomach.

"Yeah, yeah, I'll take you to kill."

The cutlery drawer fell to the floor with a bang and Jihoon got up in a heel.

"LEAVE MY FURNITURE ALONE!" he scolded and went into the kitchen. The last thing Jihoon needed at that moment was Soonyoung accidentally amputating his own toes and flooding the house with his stupidly delicious smell. Jihoon might have promised to help, but there was nothing he could do in case that stupid guy decided to use his own body as a flare. Not even his presence could mask the smell of fresh blood, even more so when the blood was from Soonyoung. "What the fuck is your problem? Do you want to learn to kill something or do you want to kill yourself?"

"Are you sure it's my fault? Look at the kind of shit you talk about!" Soonyoung's hands shivered shamefully and he tried to hide them after he put the drawer back in place. It wouldn't be good if Jihoon knew how weak and influential he was. "But anyway, explain it properly."

"You've heard of ifrits, right?"

"I think I have, what about them?"

"They're causing certain... disturbances around here that can be very bad for both of us if they draw attention to bigger things. I could get rid of them by myself, but I think it will be better if you already start training with real-life things because your targets won't always stay in place just waiting for your deadly stab."

Soonyoung nodded and tried not to be too horrified by the idea. Honestly speaking, that would be his first time killing anything and he didn't know if he was more anxious or scared. 

"Right, we left in forty minutes. Take everything you think you'll need, including that damn rowan, but just stay away from me while you're at it."

"All right," Soonyoung sighed and stared at the food momentarily until he decided he'd lost all his hunger. He went to the gun room that Jihoon kept and tried to arrange all the sharp blades in the order he could use.

Soonyoung ended up sticking knives and daggers in his coat pockets and then lost some good moments staring at the spear he had won as a gift after letting Jihoon suck his blood for the second time. How could he carry it discreetly?

He couldn't get any answer and just took it downstairs, leaving it next to Jihoon. He would know how to handle it. Then Soonyoung tried to touch his breakfast again, but all he felt was nausea because he knew he would be in a bump in a few minutes, so he couldn't eat anything.

"Are you ready?" Jihoon asked, running his fingers always cold by the back of Hoshi's neck just to see him shiver.

"I am," he sighed tiredly. He hated it when Jihoon did that, but he knew it wouldn't help to complain.

"It's good you're not lying. Let's go."

◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌

At first, Soonyoung didn't notice anything strange in the surroundings.

The houses seemed cozy as always, with their Christmas decorations sprinkled with snow that had fallen earlier. There were few people outside and, aside from the presence of the two, everything seemed to fit together ridiculously well.

With a tug, Jihoon guided him through stinking alleys full of garbage until they reached a part of the city where Soonyoung had never been; stopping to think, he didn't know much beyond the surroundings of where he used to stay before the fire.

And even if all the weapons were hidden, Jihoon seemed extremely threatening. The man's dark eyes were so cold that they could have frozen hell.

The buildings darkened by soot rose up like giants defying heaven itself and the men, and as soon as a strong smell of sulfur hit them, Soonyoung stopped walking immediately.

"It seems we have found them," Jihoon said in a quiet tone and turned on his heels. 

Then they saw them.

The demons were knocking things down and had a grotesquely funny expression on their deformed faces. Judging by that, they were probably playing with the mind of some human who was around.

They approached slowly and Jihoon threw a silver blade, which described a perfect bow, and then buried himself in the back of the ifrit's head. The two creatures turned angrily towards each other and Soonyoung couldn't tell if it was because of the attack or just because they interrupted whatever they were doing.

"Cover me or get one for yourself," Jihoon said and then threw himself into hand-to-hand combat where he was clearly at a disadvantage. 

It didn't take long for Soonyoung to conclude that the practice was totally different from the theory, and he just didn't know what to do. He wielded the spear and tried to describe bows in the air to keep things away from him.

All he was managing to do, in the end, was to try to scare the one he decided to leave on himself and it was shameful that he couldn't do more than that while Jihoon seemed to be finding all that very simple. However, before he could deflect, a couple of filthy claws came down on him and shattered the front of his jacket and shirt. Besides everything, painful holes were opened in his chest and made the boy's scarlet blood drip and stain the dirty snow. The pain was enough to wake him up, at least a little, and made him want to mutilate those things until they were dead.

"Damned," Jihoon growled when he threw himself on the thing and struck it blindly. The rotten flesh stank like the lakes of hell and made unpleasant noises while it was pierced, but the ifrit seemed not to care about it.

The creature was trying at all costs to throw itself on him and, with horror, Soonyoung realized that it might want to drain his blood. Fear and adrenaline drove him to keep on hitting until the ifrit fell, so it was easier to reach his other blades and bury them in his ocular cavities.

Soonyoung tried his best to keep going without thinking while he gave the final blows, and when he was sure it was dead, he turned to Jihoon. He needed to contain a gasp when he realized that more ifrits had appeared and three were on his partner, who had nothing but a simple knife and his own body abilities to face them.

It was possible that he'd only get in the way if he interfered, but before he could think clearly, Soonyoung slipped through the snow to his aid.

Jihoon felt a guttural growl struggling to get out of his throat when he smelled Soonyoung's fresh blood amid that filth, but he stuck his nails on his palms to control that animal part of himself. He could drink as much as he wanted after he got rid of those damned things.

There was something pleasant about cutting and killing, Soonyoung soon noticed while deviating from the gelatinous substance that squirted in the hills whenever some ifrit was pierced. However, the evident pleasure in Jihoon's eyes made him fear, scared with how far he would go to experience that sensation again. Thinking about the implications it might have for him made him terribly frightened.

Jihoon was disgracefully sweating and his clothes were nothing but filthy rags, but he didn't even seem to notice as he threw himself silently once more. It was quite clear that he was in advantage and could end it at any moment, but, for some reason, he decided he would like to share that last one with Soonyoung.

Together, they knocked down the last ifrit and faced each other in silence as the cold wind whipped their exposed skin. Then, slowly, a smile opened on Jihoon's dirty face, forcing the appearance of a similar smile on Soonyoung's scared and electrified face.

Everything still seemed too surreal  but, when Hoshi saw all those corpses around him, having actively participated in the death of two of them, it seemed too much for him: bile climbed up his throat and scratched his way out while Jihoon pretended not to see. Something seemed to have been opened inside Soonyoung and he couldn't even measure whether it was good or bad. He felt strange.

They had made it. Together.

Soonyoung suspected that it wasn't much for Jihoon but, for him, it looked to be the most important event in the world. It was the first time he had managed to defend himself, it was the first time he had killed something, it was the first time he didn't cry with fear just for thinking about being attacked.

"I'm a garbage, am I not?" JIhoon observed, interrupting the thoughts of the other man and cast a funny look at himself.

"You're a garbage daily," Soonyoung remarked as he pulled black hair out of his eyes. Only then did he notice that his hands were shaking violently, to the point that it looked more like a vibration. "I don't see anything different than normal."

"Ah, come on," Jihoon tapped his shoulder on Soonyoung's lightly, almost making the other fall on the dirt. "You know I'm not that bad."

"Aren't?" Soonyoung raised his eyebrows and then started walking, trying to guess the path they had used to get there.

"No." Jihoon gave a short run to reach him and then they started walking side by side. "Maybe. I don't know. Did you get too hurt?"

"I don't think so, just a few scratches."

"Okay, but I'll take care of you anyway. It's not good that you're dripping blood out there, but at least it's still light and nothing too dangerous will come after you."

And Jihoon  _ took  _ care, to the total surprise of the human boy. He knew that Jihoon needed him and that he was more than interested in whatever was in his blood, but he didn't imagine that he'd care that much.

The first thing he did when they entered the house was to force Soonyoung to sit in the living room while he went to get a first aid kit that was abandoned in his room, totally useless until that moment.

With care, Soonyoung got rid of the patchwork of cloth that pathetically hung on his body, shaking hard when the cloth stuck to the blood-soaked skin. It hurt like hell.

"What was it? Will you try to drink the blood from my wounds?" Soonyoung provoked by noticing that Jihoon stared at him.

"Only if you want to," Jihoon answered quietly and then knelt beside Hoshi. Soonyoung had probably never seen him so serious like in that moment, so he kept quiet so as not to say anything wrong and make him stressed. After all, Jihoon had very sharp fangs and was with strange things in his hands.

Without saying anything, Jihoon wiped the blood with a piece of cotton soaked in something that burned to the point of making Soonyoung hiss and tighten his nails on the palms of his hands, but he tried his best not to say anything and look like a crybaby when the other was so ... stoic.

"You did well," Jihoon commented when he was almost done with the bandages on his chest. "I thought they were going to kill you."

"Oh, so it was all a plan to get rid of me?"

"Oh, no, I was discovered! And now, what do I do?" Jihoon's forced performance made an exhausted and painful laugh escape from Soonyoung's lips. Something in itself still hurt because of Jihoon's unknown proximity, but that time he didn't care much. It seemed to be hurting less than the days before, and maybe his body was finally getting used to Jihoon.

"I'm going to roll this up on you now," Jihoon warned and lifted a roll of bandage. Apparently, Soonyoung had been struck a lot more times than he had felt, and that was strange. He just didn't know what to do.

Soon Jihoon stood up to evaluate his progress and stood while looking at Soonyoung's back. That was his chance to try to ber that with more calm than the first morning of the boy there, since now he was more receptive to touches and examinations.

That didn't even seem possible, but Jihoon knew very well those marks, each one of them.

Soonyoung was definitely not a human as he had always thought, but Jihoon already knew that. He already knew that that boy carried magic in his veins, but he didn't understand how he might have done it when he had those marks on him.

Soonyoung was not human, but neither was he a witch, like Jihoon thought he was. Soonyoung was one of them, one of the worst kind.

An  _ arsonist. _

"Is everything all right there?" Soonyoung ventured to ask after a long time of silence. As much as he hated it when the smaller talked too much, he was a little worried about his own situation.

"Of course," Jihoon forced himself to say and finished rolling the gauze around Soonyoung's chest. "Find a way to clean up without ruining my work, now."

With that, Soonyoung was left alone in the room again.

He doubted that he would be able to take a bath without destroying everything, so he passed a damp cloth over the rest of his body and went up as fast as he could to his room. Maybe it would have been a bad idea to ignore breakfast because he was sure he was feeling kinda sick at that moment because of hunger.

If someone asked, he wouldn't know for sure if he had slept or passed out, but the case is that it didn't take long for the boy's vision to darken completely and plunge him totally into a pitch where not even the sun could reach him.

◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌

Soonyoung felt extremely ridiculous for catching a cold. That meant that he couldn't train - not that he was too eager to go out and kill things again, anyway - and that he would probably be going through a long time until he cured himself.

He couldn't even tell if he was awake or not, since his conscience seemed to be floating and carrying him through strange places that he couldn't tell where they were. Soonyoung only went to make sure he was well anchored to Earth when the door opened in a burst and Jihoon examined the room.

"What are you doing there up until now?" he asked, opening the curtains. "You won't learn to kill shit if you lie there all day."

"I'm sick." The words scratched painfully across his throat and a dry cough followed them.

"You are a very fragile little thing," Jihoon snapped his tongue and stared at you for a few brief moments. Technically, Soonyoung shouldn't get sick unless he was poisoned. "I don't know what I should do to help you, I don't know anything about human medicine and I don't think any doctor would know how to treat you because of the... thing you have in you."

"What thing?" Soonyoung questioned, visibly confused. Again, the feeling that Jihoon was hiding something important hit him.

"The magic you do, it kind of alters your whole physiology. What the hell would you do with all those books if you don't know anything?" Jihoon frowned and then sighed. "Anyway, it doesn't matter, I'll see if I can find some medication that won't poison you."

Jihoon was talking too fast and, at that moment, that only served to leave Soonyoung disoriented. He couldn't understand if Jihoon was taking care of himself because he really cared or if it was only because he couldn't consume sick blood, but it didn't matter much in the end.

Jihoon checked Soonyoung's temperature and then left to try to find out what were the herbs that a certain witch had planted in his backyard because some of them could help.

He hadn't said a single word about the marks on Soonyoung's back since he discovered them; there was something there that just didn't fit. Why was he an arsonist in the first place? The only arsonists that existed in history were  _ nosferatu  _ themselves, but Soonyoung wouldn't be able to go out under the sun and much less grow up as a healthy boy if he was one of them. What was that unknown mark just below the sign of fire? Jihoon was sure he had never seen it before.

Besides,  _ how  _ did Soonyoung manage to walk around with pieces of rowan sticking out of himself without having any allergic reaction?

All those questions filled Jihoon's mind and made him stressed because he couldn't just ask someone without denouncing that he was keeping the boy for himself. His whole plan would go down the drain if they even imagined that he was getting stronger that way, so he would have to figure it out on his own.

However, he hadn't yet noticed any big difference in himself. He felt remotely more alive but remained totally defenseless against the protective magic Hoshi could do. Supposedly, he should already be able to do the same, but maybe he just shouldn't try to rush things.

He was already giving up when he finally found the plant he was looking for and washed it anyway before throwing it inside the kettle. Probably Soonyoung was hungry, but Jihoon didn't have time to babysit. Since they would do absolutely nothing that day, he would take the opportunity to solve some outstanding issues that had been left aside since the arsonist arrived there.

"Drink it all," he said, leaving the thermos next to Soonyoung and making him wake up again. "I'll spend the whole day out and maybe spend the night, too. Do your protective magic and don't open the door for anyone, even if they say it's me."

"I'm not an idiot," Soonyoung rolled his eyes and smelled the content of the bottle before slowly sipping. "I don't want to get out of bed, who will say that I'm going to attend guests."

"Who knows," Jihoon shrugged and messed up Soonyoung's hair quickly. "Make sure you don't die inside my house."

Soonyoung sighed heavily and decided just to ignore while finishing all the tea, and then wondered if it would have been smart to trust the origin of everything that came from Jihoon. As far as he knew, that could be a poison.

His entrails seemed to calm down as soon as the other one moved away and, not for the first time, Soonyoung wondered how old he would be. It was uncomfortable to live with someone who was suspenseful about absolutely everything, and he wished he wasn't so miserable that he could just leave it all behind and be alone again.

When he was sure he was alone, Soonyoung risked getting up. Maybe he should explore a little bit in search of anything that could give him some clue about who Jihoon was in fact, but he didn't even know where to start.

He had noticed that the house was too tall to finish on the second floor, so he concluded that maybe he should look for an attic. The plan was aborted as soon as dizziness hit him and almost threw him down the stairs, making him remember that he hadn't eaten anything for more than twenty hours.

However, even with this, he was not exactly in the mood to eat. Soonyoung forced himself down the stairs because he had no choice and looked for something in the closets that did not need to be taken to the fire because he felt even more exhausted just by thinking about having to cook.

Once properly fed, he went back up the stairs and stood in the middle of the hallway while wondering where, hell, the rest of it was. If only he could find a trapdoor.

However, it didn't take long for him to realize that Jihoon wouldn't be so obvious; that house was like a trap, if he looked at it well, then he wouldn't leave important things so... exposed. Soonyoung leaned against the wall and tried to think in the same way Jihoon would probably think, but it was hard when they knew each other so little.

How was he supposed to understand how Jihoon worked when he didn't even know what that man was? Also, finding the attic probably meant finding what Jihoon really was.

With one click, Soonyoung realized that probably the trapdoor and the stairs they were looking for should be inside Jihoon's room. He knew that his smell would get imbued in every corner if he even touched that door, so he just sat in the middle of the hall and tried to find other ways to discover things.

He doubted that the books exposed in the living room would have anything important, but since he had nothing better to do, it didn't hurt to try to take a look at them.

After picking up the ones that looked more promising, he sat down on the carpet and opened the first one, finding nothing but what he no longer knew about sorcerers and witches. However, he forced himself to continue reading, even if his eyes were already weighing and he was bored.

Soonyoung read about the main races of sorcerers and was not sure if the fairy part was real, but he had learned early on not to doubt anything, as absurd as it might seem.

He was reading about the fairy levels when whatever was in the medication given by Jihoon took effect and, without even thinking about moving, he ended up falling asleep on the floor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, me and my friend started a fanfic based on Danger Days, by My Chemical Romance, so maybe someone would like to check it out? Anyway, here is the [link](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26321158).


	6. Sorcerer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hmm hello, I got late because I was lazing around, I'm sorry vnfoihvgfbn  
> so, from now on shit will actually happen and I hope y'all enjoy it.

"We're heading out to kill again," Jihoon notified when Soonyoung finally left his bedroom.

He finally seemed to get better from that disease, so he had no reason to keep slacking off and act as if there was no concern in the world.

"Alright," Soonyoung sighed, not a bit surprised by that. He knew that, at one time or another, things would return to "normal." At least, he was feeling a little bit more confident about those missions, since now he knew what to expect.

Furthermore, Jihoon had not yet had the chance to try the benefits that Soonyoung's blood could have brought him, so that was a great opportunity to do so.

Jihoon waited while Soonyoung ate something quickly and then handed him a spear before start going outside.

"Considering the last time, I think you'd probably do better if you don't have to be so... close to attack, so make sure you don't lose this shit like you did last time."

"What are we going to kill?" Soonyoung asked after a nod. It seemed odd just ask like that, but he tried not to overthink. If they were going to kill something, it was because the said thing deserved.

"I'm still not sure," Jihoon decided to be honest. "Probably some relative of that big dog that almost killed you that other day."

Soonyoung couldn't think of an answer to that information, so he just nodded and did his best to keep up with Jihoon's quick steps.

As usual, he felt extremely... empty when he saw that the houses were already decorated for Christmas. Obviously, he had never celebrated that date again after what happened, and, as much as he didn't believe in anything, he felt jealous of those who had a family to spend holidays like that.

"Wait," Jihoon demanded and then pushed Soonyoung against a wall. "Stop with this bullshit right now."

"Stop what?" Soonyoung questioned, visibly confused.

"Of feeling sorry for yourself. If you want to cry and whine over anything, do it while you're in your bed, not here outside."

"But I..."

"I can smell your self-pity from afar. Get yourself together," Jihoon finished in a sharp tone and then started walking again.

Confusion tinged Soonyoung's senses, but he decided to stay still. He didn't want to attract Jihoon's wrath to himself when the latter seemed so... thirsty to kill something.

Not for the first time, Soonyoung asked himself if trusting Jihoon so much to the point to sleep under the same ceiling as he was a rational decision. And, if this wasn't bad enough, the fact that Jihoon could  _ smell  _ his emotions wasn't something that would help to convince himself that he was safe.

The cold air made his lungs burn, and, honestly, Soonyoung was already getting tired of walking that much. At that point, they both were already almost out of the town and there was absolutely nothing but snow and a damned wind that left him freezing to bones.

He wanted to ask if they were close, already, but he was afraid to make Jihoon even angrier with him.

Soon they got tangled up in dry trees, and Jihoon held Soonyoung's wrist, pulling him more towards himself.

"Don't get fucking lost," he mumbled under his breath. "And don't feel pity. Remember that if we didn't come here, it'd hunt you around the city and make a big mess that we'd have to clean up afterward."

"'kay," Soonyoung whispered and tried to convince himself that the tremor in his voice was caused by the cold.

They continued descending through the forest, and even the sound of snow and branches being crushed under his feet made Soonyoung scared and hold Jihoon's arm tighter.

His body bumped into Jihoon's when he abruptly stopped, and before either of them could say anything, Jihoon looked up and  _ saw it. _

Honestly, he didn't know that lycanthropes could climb trees, further  _ that  _ high, but he knew that his eyes weren't betraying him. Jihoon pushed Soonyoung to the opposite side in the exact instant the creature jumped over him and watched it fall for a few moments before handing the dagger and burying it in its neck.

The lycanthrope was heavier than Jihoon expected, so they both went to the ground as soon as their bodies collided. The smaller one didn't wait to see how it would react, so he struck again and again.

"If you want to help me here!" He squealed to Soonyoung while trying to kick that thing away from his body. Jihoon could feel that he wasn't who that creature was looking for, so if it had any chances, it would kill him without hesitation.

Soonyoung  _ wanted  _ to help, really did, but it was hard to aim straight when the two were so entangled and moving so much. He knew that there was a high chance of hitting Jihoon by accident if he just attacked without thinking too much and would have  _ two  _ angry creatures to deal with.

He approached from behind when the lycanthrope stood on top of Jihoon again and breathed out before trying clumsy strokes against its head and neck.

Soonyoung sincerely didn't understand anything, but it seemed that the lycanthrope also wanted to get rid of Jihoon and go in search of something else. With horror, Soonyoung realized that  _ he _ was the something else, its prey, and Jihoon was just a nuisance to the creature. However, it would be even worse if he tried to escape because there would be a greater chance that the shapeshifter would get rid of Jihoon and go after him.

"Don't panic!" Jihoon shouted when Soonyoung's smell began to get stronger and then stuck his sharp fangs in the enemy's arm, making him squeal louder than when he was being hit.

Jihoon was only satisfied when he managed to pull out a piece of rotten flesh and spat it out immediately before he got up and picked up a gun in an inner pocket that Soonyoung had ever seen until that moment.

"Alright, we can do it the easy or the hard way. You chose," Jihoon said and shot the shapeshifter's thigh. "What were you doing around  _ my  _ region?"

He waited for one, two, three minutes before shooting at the other leg and squat down to face the eyes of the thing. There it was that Jihoon, who Soonyoung was so afraid.

It wasn't necessary to see his eyes to know that they were totally hollow and emotionless. If it wasn't for the dirt on his clothes and his hair, nobody could say that Jihoon was at a disadvantage in a physical collision until a few moments before. 

"I can open a thousand holes in you and leave you bleeding forever in case you don't cooperate," Jihoon warned, and Soonyoung knew well that it was not a bluff. "Why were you hanging around my region?"

And once again, the shapeshifter remained silent. The next shot lodged in its jaw, and it couldn't stop the sore winch that escaped before it finally decided to cooperate.

"You already know why," The lycanthropist's voice came out loud and clear in an embellished accent, but they managed to understand it anyway. "You have the Arsonist, and we want the Arsonist.

"The Arsonist is mine," Jihoon answered in the same sharp tone as before and shot the lycanthrope's wrists. "And that region is mine. I believe you know well what the rules are about not trying to touch what doesn't belong to you and about not invading areas that aren't yours. Your clan will not be happy to know that you started a conflict involving  _ me." _

Soonyoung soon decided that, maybe, he didn't want to know why a conflict involving Jihoon would be able to scare an evil creatures' clan. He did his best to keep the fear out of his system, or else Jihoon would start bitching at him again, and everything would go wrong. Besides, he already had too many questions in his mind to worry about that, especially about that Arsonist thing.

A part of Soonyoung was particularly very angry with all that situation because even that stupid lycanthropist who was trying to kill 'em seemed to know more about them than Soonyoung himself, judging by the glances the creature cast at him from time to time.

"Stop distracting our guest," Jihoon said quietly when Soonyoung's scent intensified. Then, he focused again on the creature lying on the floor. "And about you. I see no reason to allow you to keep living, even more knowing that you'll try to take what's mine.

And having said that, Jihoon fired five shots between the creature's eyes and left it to die alone.

"Let's go," he said to Soonyoung and left walking without waiting for him.

Hoshi's gaze got stuck in the bloody creature for a few more long minutes before he finally managed to force himself to avert his eyes and follow Jihoon.

It was simply awful how he could end anything's life that crossed his path and then act as if nothing much had happened.

"Will you tell me something, or will I have to invade your privacy to find out?" Soonyoung quietly asked when he reached him.

"It depends on what you want to know. And you could never invade anything, not with that smell of you signaling each one of your steps."

"What was this Arsonist it was talking about? What the hell are you?" Soonyoung decided to ignore the last part because he knew that Jihoon would never leave him alone because of things he couldn't control.

"As for the first question, I still can't talk about it. As for the second, I already said I'll tell you when you learn to defend yourself decently."

"I don't remember any of it," Soonyoung answered in a shrill tone and squeezed his fingers around the spear.

"It doesn't matter, I do."

"I hate this," Soonyoung sighed and started to walk in front when he recognized the path they had been through before. "I hate needing you."

"I thought we were buddies, at this point," Jihoon answered in an amused tone and faced Soonyoung's back while walking.

"You know we're not. I don't even know what you are, and you hide a thousand things from me, and I have the feeling that at least half of it involves me. You know I have a right to know about these things."

"I'm not so sure about what you are," Jihoon decided to be honest. "I can't just say that you are something when, in reality, neither I know."

It caught Soonyoung off guard since he was sure Jihoon knew everything.

"And you drink my blood even though you don't know what it can do to you?"

"Yes, and because it's sweet. I like sweet things," among all possible justifications, this was certainly the one Soonyoung least expected, and it was the one that made him blush miserably. He hated Jihoon.

"And was it worth it? Drinking so much of my blood, I mean."

"I haven't felt any screaming difference yet, but I feel hunger less often now." He shrugged. "And your smell grew stronger."

"I hope it means that you don't want to do it anymore."

"Why wouldn't I want to?" Jihoon raised an eyebrow and dropped his dirty weapons on the floor of the living room as soon as they arrived home. "Go take a shower and then meet me here."

"I don't want to," Soonyoung rolled his eyes and went up the stairs in two steps. He was too tired to have to deal with Jihoon on top of him.

"Maybe you want to sleep on the street then?" Jihoon said louder to make sure Soonyoung would listen, and even if the taller one hadn't answered, Jihoon knew he would, yes, come down.

Soonyoung's mood probably hadn't been that bad since he moved there.

Normally, he would feel startled in front of Jihoon and would do his best not to give him reasons to put him out, but it was just that he was exhausted from being always in the dark about everything while being forced to behave and be obedient.

Honestly, he couldn't even understand why Jihoon had brought him together on that hunt. Soonyoung knew damn well that he was practically useless and did nothing but watch Jihoon rip answers out of the shapeshifter before getting rid of it. But, maybe, Jihoon had taken him together only to attract the lycanthropist. The thought of being used as a fucking bait made Soonyoung even angrier than the certainty of being useless could ever do.

With what right would Jihoon do something like that without at least warning him?

Soonyoung couldn't understand why he was so angry, despite everything. He should have expected Jihoon to put him in danger by absolute whim, so it didn't make sense that he felt so... used. Especially if he was to consider that just being touched by him practically every day was one of the conditions to stay there. He had no words to describe how he hated that situation.

Soonyoung ended up falling asleep before he could force himself to take a bath, but he was too exhausted to even consider caring about it.

However, it didn't last long.

Troubled dreams tinged his sleep, and Soonyoung found himself dragged back to reality every few minutes. The cycle lasted a few hours until he finally gave up trying and then sat on the bed, snorting.

The bedroom felt more stuffy than it should be at that time of the year, and Soonyoung needed a few good moments to remember that, unlike his old house,  _ there was  _ a heater in use.

Hoshi put on the first clothes he found and soon went down to the kitchen to adjust the temperature but, in the middle of the way, he considered that he should also eat something. It was hard to try to guess what time was based on the illumination, considering that the day had been dark since morning.

Heavy clouds darkened the sky like a blanket and, judging by the appearance, it was probably already almost night and would rain a lot.

Soonyoung saw Jihoon lying on the carpet of the living room, as always, when he finally reached the end of the staircase but did not even look at him. He was still angry with everything and was truly considering ending that strange deal they had and getting other ways to survive.

Jihoon also didn't say anything, but, honestly, he wanted to kick Soonyoung's ass. Half of his omissions were certainly protecting that moron, but of course, he was too dumb and too selfish to even try to think rationally.

However, Soonyoung surprised both of them when he returned to the room after eating and adjusting the temperature and sat in the armchair that Jihoon usually sat when they did that.

"Come on, I want to sleep," Soonyoung said before Jihoon could ask what the hell he was doing.

"Don't act like we didn't arrange it that way," was all Jihoon said as he slowly got up and then put himself between Soonyoung's legs.

"I'm not doing anything," Soonyoung answered in a petulant tone and pulled the collar down, shaking in anticipation. He hated it.

Without saying another word, Jihoon leaned over and sank his fangs into Soonyoung's soft skin. He was able to feel all the anger that crossed the body of the Arsonist so clearly that, for a moment, he was confused with what his own feelings would be and what was Soonyoung's.

But, incredibly, those bad and exhausting feelings left Soonyoung with a taste even sweeter than the ordinary. If Jihoon wasn't so... intoxicated, he probably would have realized that something was wrong. Kwon Soonyoung's body, like a poisonous plant, was intoxicating and had its ways of dealing with parasites.

The Arsonist whined when that demon's cursed fangs pierced deeper than he was used to, but he tried his best to remain still. As far as he knew, Jihoon could be punishing him for something he didn't yet know for sure.

It didn't take long for that characteristic torpor to take care of Soonyoung and he felt his head get ridiculously light but, that time, there was a part of him that refused to give in so easily. The pain in his neck was already getting unbearable and, as much as he didn't have the strength to fight, he tried to push Jihoon away from him.

And, then, the toxins finally took effect.

Jihoon wouldn't know for sure what he had changed, but he knew he had crossed the line when the poignant pain Soonyoung felt spread to his body. Before he could think of anything, he felt his limbs stiffen, and his breathing became shallow.

He would have laughed if he could because it was  _ obvious _ that he would end up intoxicating himself at some point. However, the situation was somewhat critical, considering that he felt he would soon lose consciousness if he couldn't regain his senses, and Soonyoung seemed to be almost faint, too useless to do anything at all.

Honestly, Jihoon was particularly interested in understanding those effects on his body, but, first, he needed to make sure he wasn't dying. He let himself slip until he was sitting on the floor and supported his forehead on Soonyoung's knee before closing his eyes, hating the way his head seemed to be spinning, causing him vertigo. He didn't even know he could feel something like that.

Soonyoung had probably never felt so... odd in his whole life. It seemed like he was out of his body at the same time that he was damn well anchored to it, and it was hard to force himself to make the simplest of movements. He felt Jihoon's touch on his knee, but, strangely, his body didn't seem to be repelling him.

"You got your revenge, hm?" Jihoon laughed softly while his mouth felt dry.

"Are you dying?" Soonyoung crooked, trying not to move too much so as not to make his neck hurt more than it already hurt.

"Probably, but help me here now... I need you to call the only contact I have on my phone. You don't have to say anything."

Soonyoung would like to have the strength to narrow his eyes, but he obeyed when Jihoon's stiff hands knocked the phone over his lap.

The name  _ Jeonghan _ shone on the screen for a few moments, and then a soft voice picked up in a giggle:  _ "I'm going, don't die before I arrive." _

Before Soonyoung could say anything, the connection had already ended, and his mind did not take long to wander, wondering who would be that  _ Jeonghan _ . It was hard to believe that Jihoon kept in touch with anyone, and Soonyoung couldn't even conceive what would be the connection between Jihoon and the unknown.

Jihoon knew that he, probably, wouldn't take more than ten minutes to arrive, so he allowed himself to relax at once against Soonyoung's knees and felt the sticky fingers of unconsciousness rubbing against the edges of his brain.

"I knew I shouldn't have let you stay with him," a soft voice that sounded a lot like the ringing of a wind bell erupted near the door, almost ripping Soonyoung's soul from his body.

How had he got there...?

"Shut up and help me," Jihoon snorted, too rude for someone who needed help.

Soonyoung turned his head slightly and let a surprised gasp escape when he saw the creature. He was sure he was hallucinating because no one could have horns and translucent wings as thin as those of a butterfly.

With a heavy sigh, he closed his eyes again and hoped that those delusions would end soon.

"Always very tender," Jeonghan rolled his eyes and squatted close to them. "My garden still exists?"

"I didn't touch that old crap," Jihoon sighed and opened one eye. "Stop making me make efforts."

Jeonghan rolled his eyes and laughed softly before going outside, moving as if that was his own house. As far as he knew, Jihoon would not die poisoned, only suffer a little, so he couldn't see reasons to be fast.

Honestly, Jeonghan was a little surprised. He hadn't believed too much in the rumors about the existence of the Arsonist and believed even less when his existence simply disappeared from the map, but now he understood why. 

He hadn't believed so much in Jihoon's ability to hide things, but now he was perfectly capable to see one more of the reasons to be so afraid of him.

The sorcerer threw a handful of herbs into a kettle and let the tea boil to the point of its smell filling the whole house before coming back close to them, unable to contain a laugh when he saw how ended Jihoon looked. Of course, he would go very thirsty to the pot and get fucked up because of it.

After a quick check, he concluded that Soonyoung was quite capable of recovering on his own and sighed with relief. The boy only seemed to be extremely exhausted, but it was understandable, given the circumstances. So he focused on the  _ Dhampir _ at his feet.

It wasn't necessary to observe much to notice that he had lost control and drank too much, but what caught Jeonghan's attention was the smell emanating from him. There was the characteristic smell of Jihoon, which was as sweet as melons in summer, and, almost imperceptibly, there was the smell of burnt lilies.

The latter certainly did not belong to him.

As miserable as Jihoon was, he didn't deserve any finesse, so Jeonghan simply kicked him until he was lying on his back and stuck two fingers down his throat. Then, he took them up to his nose and slowly inspired his eyes sparkling in interest when he recognized that odor.

Silently, Jeonghan forced Jihoon to drink all his infusion and left a bowl beside him for when he started barfing, which should happen in a few moments.

While this was not happening, however, the sorcerer took the opportunity to study Soonyoung, who was now sleeping peacefully against the armchair. That boy looked too young to be what he was, practically a baby in magical terms, and yet he had managed to do that with Jihoon. It was understandable that he was being so sought after on the Other Side. Not for the first time, Jeonghan wondered how much the Arsonist would know about himself.

Jihoon's choking attracted Jeonghan's attention, and he laughed softly as the dhampir put it all out.

"I hope this will teach you to have limits," That's all Jeonghan said before offering another infusion, much more stinking than the previous one.

"Shut up. And what kind of poison is this you're giving me?"

"One that will fix your stomach," Jeonghan decided to be honest and then went back to analyze Soonyoung. "I'm surprised he didn't make it before."

"Made what?" Jihoon raised his eyebrows and sat down slowly. "And, if I were you, I wouldn't expect much from him. The boy still thinks he's human."

"I thought you were going to teach him to defend himself...?"

"One thing at a time, grasshopper," Jihoon finished his drink in one sip and stretched out. "Thanks, I think I'm better."

"No need to thank me, you know I'm being forced," Jeonghan smiled cynically. "Anyway, I know what the boy is."

"So speak up, I have no patience for your rodeo."

Jeonghan even opened his mouth to answer, but before he could say anything, Soonyoung started coughing and opened his eyes slowly, more confused than ever.

"What are you?" Soonyoung asked with a rough voice.

"What do I look like to you?" Jeonghan stared at him curiously and smiled. "I am a sorcerer."

"Hmm. I am Soonyoung." The boy sighed as if it was nothing and went back to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my [twitter](https://www.twitter.com/haoshoumon) if you wanna chat.  
> As always, let me know if you think something's weird and let me know what you think so far!


	7. Moroii.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii it's been a long time  
> I'll update again in a bit, so please accept this double update as an apology fudivfb

Jihoon was feeling odd. He also wanted to punch Soonyoung for interrupting Jeonghan, but he wasn't in any condition to jump on whoever it may be at that moment.

By that time, the Arsonist had been put to his bed and the other two were sitting in the living room while staring at each other silently. Jihoon would always hate Jeonghan for loving those stupid little games of silence.

"So?" Jihoon finally gave in and asked.

"Well, you know what a _Moroii_ is, I believe. You wouldn't have been alive that long if you were so incompetent."

"Of course, I know," Jihoon rolled his eyes and ignored the eerie chill that went up to his back. "Are you implying that Hoshi is one of them?"

"I never imply anything, you know," Jeonghan stretched his legs lazily and stared at them for a few moments. "I don't care if you believe it or not, but your Arsonist is a _Moroii._ "

It wasn't that Jihoon didn't believe, though; it was just that he had seen the extinction of that race, so it made no sense for one to appear hundreds of years later.

"So he never was a human, as he believed he was," Jihoon thought out loud and stretched to get more of Jeonghan's stinking tea.

"Oooor he died four years ago, and something creepy happened. But I don't think he'll know how to answer you, many people lose part of their memory because of traumas."

"Good for me he's not a person then," Jihoon said after finishing the drink. "I don't know if I'm feeling odd because you poisoned me or if because, finally, the blood is doing the effect I wanted."

Probably, Yoon Jeonghan was the only thing in the whole world that had Jihoon's full confidence. The _dhampir_ knew too much about the other's shady business and always seemed to be one step ahead of everything, so Jeonghan would have to be at least suicidal to try something against him.

They had known each other for so long that neither could remember since when, but probably it was since the turn of the century. Jeonghan was almost dead in a dump, and Jihoon was looking for trouble, so they ended up approaching very fast. After that, they ended up becoming something like business partners, and even though Jihoon remembered all the times that Jeonghan owed him, he knew that the sorcerer would come to his aid anyway.

Besides, there was a time when they could consider themselves lovers. Jeonghan obviously couldn't love anything but himself, but Jihoon didn't care. The thing was that being with Jeonghan helped him feel less like a monster and more like a human being, even if that was the last thing he was.

And it was for that exact reason that Jihoon saw no problem in telling all his plans to Jeonghan because the most he'd do would be laugh like he knew something very funny and then pretend he had never heard about it.

"I would kick poisoning. Theoretically, your blood can't even mix."

"We'll find out soon, I guess," that's all Jihoon answered and then yawned. "I'm tired, did you poison me even more?"

"I should, but no. Someone has to take care of the Arsonist, and I'm not open to babysitting services," Jeonghan got up and spread his wings, making a puff of air travel through the environment. "Anyway, I'm going. See ya."

"And that's why we didn't work. Bye, go through the shadows," Jihoon answered, without moving. His business could certainly wait.

Jeonghan laughed a bit more at the state Jihoon was in and then finally left for the nightly cold, apparently happy with the humidity in his wings.

Jihoon continued there, too exhausted to move, and sighed. At times like that, he certainly envied mortals for being able to sleep, and now he also envied the damned thing that Soonyoung was.

Moroii.

It even seemed like a bad joke. Of all races, why that one? Why, hell, did he have to be exactly a fire demon that seemed to have nothing to do with the Moroii that existed before?

Soonyoung was much more powerful than Jihoon imagined at first, and also much more ignorant of what could be considered healthy. Moreover, Jihoon knew that it was only a matter of time before the boy's powers really began to manifest and forced the appearance of his true form.

If that was the case, then he would need to start training him soon, but he had no aptitude for magic. I could count on Jeonghan, of course, but there was still a problem, which was Soonyoung himself.

He wouldn't do anything if Jihoon didn't start being more transparent with him, but the dhampir couldn't simply pour so much information on someone totally ignorant. That would bring more harm than good.

Why was it so hard to deal with anyone other than Jeonghan?

Anyway, he could think about that when it dawned, or at least when he stopped feeling like a floor cloth. With enormous laziness, Jihoon forced himself to go up to his room right after checking if the doors were locked and, for the first time in years, he fell asleep.

◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌

The morning took infinity to arrive but, at least, Soonyoung felt more rested than he had felt in months.

His neck was still sore, and his thoughts were a big meaningless mess, but, at least, he was feeling good. The blankets seemed softer than usual against his skin, and his instincts were not screaming that he would die.

It was good to feel normal at least once in life.

However, Soonyoung knew he wasn't normal and never would be, so he forced himself out of bed and went straight to the bathroom. As much as he had done almost nothing the night before, he always felt dirty after letting Jihoon use him.

And, like a flood, all the memories invaded his mind. It was even comical that he woke up feeling so good right after almost killing Jihoon, but the focus of his thoughts was not exactly this.

The Sorcerer's voice, who looked more like a fairy, was still very much alive in his memory and, even if he was practically unconscious, Soonyoung remembered a little of the things he had said. He remembered that Jeonghan said he knew what he was and, honestly, no matter what Jihoon told him, he would get the answers he wanted.

The bath didn't last more than six minutes, and he soon ran to the floor below, strangely not finding Jihoon thrown on the carpet. Maybe he had really killed him, or maybe Jeonghan had kidnapped him. Both options seemed great because he would have the house to himself until the end of his days and would never have to deal with that damn parasite again.

"Why are you so happy?" Jihoon's voice floated from the top of the stairs as Soonyoung tried to decide whether to eat or clean first.

"I thought you were dead," he simply answered and decided he needed to eat first. "I believe you already have one of the answers I want."

"I'm fine, Hoshi, thanks for asking," Jihoon rolled his eyes and came closer. "Thank you for trying to kill me."

"You drink my blood because you want to, I never offered anything. And don't play sneaky."

"Well... you might want to sit down. And swallow this food first," Jihoon soon concluded that trying to convince him that knowing the truth wasn't a good idea would be more laborious than trying to explain the truth itself, so he'd only get rid of the responsibility at once.

Soonyoung followed the recommendations and waited, hoping that Jihoon would stop that damn drama at once.

"First of all... What do you remember about that night? You know what I'm talking about."

"Alright," Soonyoung sighed, and even if he hated to think about it, he'd do anything to find out what was wrong with him. "I had stayed up late playing video games, and when I decided to go to sleep, I felt something eerie on the front porch. I tried not to panic because I knew it was all locked up, but it didn't do any good."

The _Moroii_ inspired with strength and couldn't stop a punch of fear of poking his stomach, even if he knew he was safe there. Obviously, Jihoon felt everything, but he simply didn't know what to say, so he just waited until the boy spoke again.

"I felt it when he went to my parents' room, I felt it when he killed each of them. Now I wonder how he didn't see me since you live to complain about the stench of my fear," Soonyoung added, giving a humorless laugh at the end. "Anyway, it doesn't matter. After that, he set fire to the house and the rest you already know."

"I don't know. What did you do after that?" Jihoon leaned forward. Depending on Soonyoung's answer, maybe he could find out exactly what had happened.

"I don't remember, actually. In one moment, I was in the middle of the explosion. The next, I was in an alley, thrown over the garbage bags."

"No memory between those two things?"

"No."

"Right... And you've had the Sight since always?"

"I think so, my memories from before are very confusing," Soonyoung sighed, feeling his head start hurting slightly. "I can't remember much beyond the fire."

"Well, then I'll let Jeonghan give you the big news, he can have your hatred instead of me," Jihoon answered, feeling even more confused than before.

If Soonyoung had had the Sight since always, either he had been born a _Moroii,_ or he used to be something else before that, and Jihoon definitely didn't want to be the one who would explain it to him.

Evidently, Soonyoung didn't like that statement at all. Jihoon seemed to like to make him suffer, and it ruined all his good mood, replacing him with a frown and the will to beat him.

"And I believe he can instruct you in the fields I can't," Jihoon complemented before Soonyoung could say anything and finally sat down. "In the end, I still don't know anything about magic."

"Okay," Soonyoung answered, kinda contradicted. "And who is he?"

"Someone reliable, don't worry about it... And we won't train today, I'm still feeling poisoned."

"That's just a little excuse to be lazy," Soonyoung provoked and yawned. "I'm feeling great."

"How funny you are, Hoshi," Jihoon laughed sarcastically. "Enjoy yourself in such a good mood and clean the windows, then."

"As long as you don't get in my way," - Soonyoung shrugged and soon finished eating.

"By the way... did you learn to turn that thing off?"

"I didn't turn off anything, what are you talking about?" Soonyoung frowned and walked away, looking for cleaning products.

"Well, you don't look like you're about to die live just because I'm around, so..."

"There must be so much of my blood inside you that my body no longer knows where it ends," the boy shrugged after a little thought. "At least I'm not feeling pain anymore."

"Hmm... It makes sense," Jihoon nodded and then left the kitchen. "I'll sort things out from your possible training. I hope this house is shining when I get back."

"Then clean it yourself," was all Soonyoung said before focusing on what he intended to do.

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As expected, Jeonghan accepted the offer to train Soonyoung promptly. Not only because he owed one to Jihoon, but also because he was eager to get his hands on the only _Moroii_ in the world and find out how he worked. Before anything else, Yoon Jeonghan was a scholar, and that wouldn't change so fast.

However, he didn't expect Jihoon to go looking for him again so quickly, so he was surprised when the proposal came. According to the _dhampir_ , Jeonghan could study Soonyoung as much as he wanted as a form of payment, so the deal was sealed quickly.

And that was the reason why Soonyoung was stuck in a pair of new clothes that Jihoon had delivered him in the morning without saying a word and followed him down the steep slopes that would lead them to the sorcerer.

He tried to ask what the reason for the new clothes was, but all Jihoon gave him as an answer was a sarcastic little smile and a nod. Anyway, Soonyoung was in no position to complain: having to wear Jihoon's clothes when his were dirty was quite uncomfortable, not to mention that it was better to wear something appropriate for his size instead of twisting to fit into other people's clothes.

Fortunately, it hadn't snowed much in the last morning, so his steps were not being delayed. The weather was great, in fact, almost as if it meant that it would allow people to enjoy the holiday that was soon approaching.

Soonyoung's eyes danced through the greengrocery stores and stalls that sold all sorts of Christmas sweets, and he sighed, wishing not for the first time that things were different.

Jihoon was doing a great job in ignoring him that day and certainly wouldn't spoil his efforts to ask what, hell, was happening that time. Soonyoung had this thing of getting extremely melancholic out of nowhere, and Jihoon already knew that this wouldn't change so soon. However, he hoped that training with Jeonghan would help him stop that infernal mania.

"We arrived," he warned and knocked twice on a wooden door that seemed too fragile. Soonyoung didn't know exactly what he expected from a sorcerer's house, but it was certainly something more... robust.

It didn't take long for them to be attended by a strangely smiling Jeonghan, who sent them in fast and soon guided them to a tight kitchen. Unlike Jihoon's kitchen, it seemed to be much more used and cozier. A kettle gently whistled over the small stove, and several colorful cupcakes were scattered around the table as if Jeonghan was playing with those until he had to answer the door.

Hoshi couldn't stick to much on the details, mainly because he knew he'd finally find out what he was in that meeting. Mixed with the melancholy of before, anxiety emanated in waves of his body.

"Sit down, I'm making tea," Jeonghan demanded. "I wanted to read your leaves, but I think it's better to leave it for next time, we have other more urgent matters."

"I'm glad you know," Jihoon answered in the same monotonous tone he always had and perched on the chair, leaning his chin on his knees. "But his memories are fucked up, so good luck."

"Well, I can access them, if he lets me," the sorcerer said, lining up three chipped cups in the sink. "Now be quiet and let me talk to Hoshi."

Jihoon raised his hands in surrender and laughed softly.

"Your _Moroii's_ smell is delicious, I can understand why you lost control," Jeonghan commented while coining the tea and then offered a cup for each one. "And I hope you know that I need to touch him to know how much he knows and how much he can take. If either of you starts a scandal, I'll throw both of you out."

"I don't mind if you touch him, you just can't steal him," that's all Jihoon answered before twisting his nose at the tea. "And I've had enough of his poisons."

"It'll be worse if you don't drink it," Jeonghan warned in a dangerous tone and soon smiled again. "We'll go to the basement when you're done, it'll be harder to trace his smell if he's underground."

Soonyoung definitely didn't want to find out what that creature would do, so he obeyed him promptly and finished the tea in three sips.

"The tea will erase the smell of you for a few hours," Jeonghan explained afterward. "It should be enough for us to settle our questions, and you get back home."

Shortly after, they were guided to the basement, and Soonyoung couldn't help but notice that it was a peculiar place... The room seemed to be larger than Jeonghan's entire house, and two huge tables were arranged parallel in the center of the place. Both were filled with bottles and notes that were probably worth more than Soonyoung's kidneys, but Jeonghan treated the objects as if they were garbage while he made room at the nearest table for Soonyoung to sit on.

"So... what is your most sensitive point?"

"What?"

"In your body, Hoshi, what is the most sensitive part?"

"I don't know?" Soonyoung frowned in strangeness. What the hell would Jeonghan want to know that for? Was he planning to kill him? 

"I could establish a faster connection if you knew, but it doesn't matter," he replied and started to squeeze Soonyoung's arms. "Let's find somewhere that fits. And, well, I need to get inside your head, so calm down and don't try to throw me out."

"I don't know if I want someone inside my head," Soonyoung instinctively pulled his arms back and shrank.

"I won't do anything bad, Jihoon is right there to guarantee it. Besides, I wouldn't warn you about anything if I intended to hurt you. You can choose what you want to show me, and I won't invade your privacy. But if you want to stay alive, I recommend you to cooperate."

"That's fine," Soonyoung sighed, giving in. Then he took off his jacket and shirt, exposing the strange marks on his back. "I think my most sensitive point is here. I know you'll need to touch my memories, but please don't make me remember anything I'm struggling to forget."

"You are the boss," Jeonghan answered promptly and touched the mutilated skin with his membranous fingers.

He found it fascinating how each creature came marked differently, and, although he hated his own appearance long before, he would never give up his horns, wings, or membranes. And as far as he knew, only the species of blood-drinking demons had symbols like those on their bodies. Soonyoung definitely didn't look like one of them but, honestly, nobody knows exactly what a _Moroii_ should look like.

Entering Soonyoung's consciousness was much easier than he expected, mainly because the boy always seemed to be in defense mode. And, honestly, Jeonghan was very sorry for that poor guy, which only increased when he touched the memories of that night, so many years ago. He would never be able to understand _Strigoi_ 's motivations behind all that, but he would be totally in if the subject was to end him.

Soonyoung's pain flowed inside him and made him wheezing, wondering how that boy could at least get out of bed every day. The anguish only got worse when Jeonghan tried to go through all those horrible memories and he was already almost losing focus when he finally found what he was looking for.

There, deep in Kwon Soonyoung's mind, was the source of his power. And, holy shit, Jeonghan had never seen anything like that in all his hundreds of years of life. That certainly explained why there were so many strange things behind _Moroii._ He was sure that only 20% of all that power would be able to start the Apocalypse itself, and he knew well that he didn't want to be around to see it happening.

Jeonghan didn't stay much longer inside Soonyoung's mind and took a few steps back, blinking slowly.

"Right," the sorcerer said when he got rid of the feelings that were not his. "I think I can explain what you want to know."

"Go ahead," Jihoon sent, trying to camouflage his curiosity.

"Right... Soonyoung, I believe you already know that you are not human," Jeonghan started, snapping his bony fingers.

"I know, the boy nodded. As much as he wanted to deny it, he knew he wouldn't be so sought after if he were an ordinary human.

"Good. But the thing is, you were never human," Jeonghan continued. "And, in fact, you're much more than anything you could believe you were. Your mother was not human, and since you were the firstborn, her powers passed to you during birth. Your mother was a Brígida."

"A what?" Soonyoung interrupted, his head running.

"Didn't this bastard teach you anything?" Jeonghan questioned, exasperated. "Okay, let's take it easy, then. Brígidas are fire fairies, and their power is passed on to the first child. After that, they lose their powers and look just like normal human beings. As you are the first child, the power of your mother passed to you. I believe she had an important role at Court when she was still useful, considering how much magic I found inside you."

"These powers usually awaken around the age of seven, but we'll focus on that later. The case is that the explosion in your house was strong enough to kill you, and I think it really did. That would justify the hole in your memories and everything. Only, well, you're a hybrid and, as far as I know, Brígidas are immortal. So I believe that only your human part died that night and somehow was transformed into a _Moroii._ But all the other _Moroii_ were extinct, which makes you even more in demand," Jeonghan paused briefly to catch his breath, and tried to read Soonyoung's blank expression. It was impossible.

"You have Magic in your veins and Sight because you are a Brígida. Being a _Moroii_ amplified all these things, and you are going to be a danger to yourself in case you don't start training your control soon."

"Right, I just..." Soonyoung blinked at length as to if he had just woken up. "I need to be able to focus again. I'm confused."

"Oh, yeah, I always forget that getting into someone's mind causes fatigue and loss of focus on the owner of that mind," Jeonghan slapped his own forehead. "Jihoon, bring him some coffee. And you remember everything I told you, don't you?"

Soonyoung nodded once, even though he still couldn't process anything.

"Okay, but don't get used to it," the _dhampir_ grumbled and got up fast. His mind was running. Even in his most obscene fantasies, he couldn't imagine that Soonyoung was a hybrid, let alone a Brígida. A lot of things made sense after that revelation, and, honestly, he was surprised that he hadn't been poisoned before.

As he wasn't sure how much coffee Jeonghan would need, he ended up taking the whole bottle and watched while the sorcerer made Hoshi drink two full mugs before talking to him again.

The boy felt as if he was out of his own body and could not understand exactly what was happening. He hoped that all that coffee would take effect soon because he was sure that he didn't like to feel so aerial and vulnerable.

"The first thing we need to do is mask your smell. I can't give you infusions all the time, or you'll end up poisoned for real, so we'll have to resort to safer means," Jeonghan explained. "I want to see how you react to some stimuli, so stay alert and don't try to repress anything. And please remember that nothing is real, don't have a heart attack inside my house."

Jeonghan waited until Soonyoung seemed remotely more awake and started the tests, taking notes on the changes in smell when he felt fear, hope, or hate.

It was a show of horrors when he came in that last one because the lamps and flasks burst simultaneously and surely would give him a lot of work to clean and replace. However, Jeonghan continued to stimulate him after removing the broken glass from his hair and found an answer he got particularly interesting when he simulated a reality where Jihoon did not exist.

They both seemed to hate each other, so he hoped to find joy or something worthwhile, but what he found, in reality, was fear and worry. Most likely, the hybrid feared what would happen to him if he had no one to help him hide.

Jeonghan shouted scared when a fire spot came right next to him when Soonyoung felt threatened but, fortunately, Jihoon was quick to put it out.

"Aren't you going to tell me what we have?" The _dhampir_ finally gave in to his curiosity.

"That's what I told him. He'll be a threat to himself if he's not properly trained. He's more powerful than both of us put together, more powerful than that guy."

"Right... And do you have something in mind for us to mask the smell?"

"Well, nothing will change if he's not feeling safe, so the first step is to transmit this to him, and his body will respond alone. This means that your leeching activities are forbidden," Jeonghan warned." Bring him to me every day, the moment the sun is higher in the sky. This will help to avoid unwanted appearances and we can channel all this energy to something better and more useful than blowing up all my lamps."

Jihoon just nodded and then swept the shards of glass out of Soonyoung's hair. The brunette seemed to be asleep - or passed out - with his eyes open, which was understandable considering that the wizard had exhausted all of Soonyoung's energy sources with those tests.

"Is there anything else?"

"Take care of him. As powerful and almost adult as his Hoshi is in human years, he is still a baby in supernatural matters. Don't make me regret helping you, Jihoon."

"I won't," Jihoon sighed and arranged Soonyoung on his back before he started climbing the stairs. "If we can keep him alive, soon all this will be over."

"I know, and I trust you to make this day come soon. I can't stand living in fear anymore," that's all Jeonghan said while he led them to the door he gave to the street. I'll wait for you tomorrow." 

"See you tomorrow," Jihoon waved and soon left, surprised by the clarity. It seemed like hours and hours had passed inside Jeonghan's basement, enough for it to have already dawned when they got back to reality.

His mind was full as they made their way back and, before they got home, he stopped at one of the stalls he had seen Soonyoung looking earlier and decided that it wouldn't hurt him to buy one of those Christmas cakes for the boy, even though he knew he would have a bad time just by smelling it.

After all that, Soonyoung deserved at least a little normality in his life, even if it came in the form of a bagged cake that would spoil if not consumed quickly.

Jihoon took care of Soonyoung's sleep, even though he couldn't even understand why he was doing it, and probably ended up decorating all of his expression lines and creases caused by stress. The _Moroii was_ pretty, even though it was in a totally different way than Jeonghan was.

It didn't take long for Soonyoung to wake up alone and face him totally bewildered, not being sure how real that day was and not understanding what Jihoon was doing in there. The _dhampir_ , however, remained silent until the clock struck midnight, so he forced himself to hug the hybrid and even tried to smile a little before giving him the cake and a glass of milk.

"Merry Christmas, Hoshi," the words leaked from his lips, even though he still had no idea what he was doing. After that, Soonyoung was sure he was dreaming. Never in a million years would Jihoon be so nice to him.

But it was hard to keep believing that theory when Jihoon bumped his lips slightly against his forehead before saying softly: "I won't let you die. I promise that to both of us."

: Really? Not even after you get rid of the guy who killed your mother?"

"You'll be able to take care of yourself when that happens," he sighed and then walked away completely, questioning his own sanity once again. "Anyway, rest properly after eating. Your real studies start in twelve hours."

"All right. Thanks, Jihoon."

"Not for that. I'm still exhausted, and I need to lie down, so long and good night."

Soonyoung waved his fingers and spent another time sitting against the bedside before finally slipping lying down and turning sideways. He was tremendously confused with everything, and that behavior of Jihoon was not helping at all.

"I don't think I'll let you die either, asshole," he whispered and turned to bed once more, sleeping a dreamless sleep right away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Twitter](https://www.twitter.com/haoshoumon/), if you wanna chat.  
> hope you enjoyed it and tell me if you find something weird!!


	8. Dhampir.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here it is!!!!

Soonyoung quickly got used to Jeonghan's presence. As incredible as it seemed, his personality was a thousand times easier to handle than Jihoon's, and they always talked a lot while waiting for Jihoon to come and get him.

It was so strange and liberating to be able to talk openly with someone that Soonyoung was genuinely disoriented, but it was good. He could tell Jeonghan how he felt when Jihoon drained him, and he could tell about the memories that haunted him and how he wanted to be able to be normal without feeling afraid to be judged, even if he knew that maybe he shouldn't be so careless.

But if Jihoon trusted Jeonghan, he could trust too, right? 

Anyway, that training with the wizard was not being anything that Soonyoung had imagined. He didn't know for sure what he expected, but it was definitely not sitting while he tried to meditate for most of the day. 

According to Jeonghan, he would set himself on fire if he didn't mature his mind a little more, so it was better to prevent than to remedy, even if they still didn't know for sure if the fire could hurt him. That was the problem with hybrid creatures, Jeonghan always thought. Always unpredictable, never knowing enough to live safely.

Anyway, until he was evolving fast with all that meditation stuff; being quiet while trying to visualize the power within himself wasn't being as hard as he had expected.

"I think we can try something new by tomorrow," Jeonghan told him, shaking him gently out of the torpor of meditation. "I believe some small things won't do any harm."

"Right," Soonyoung nodded, suddenly feeling much more excited since he had been  _ rescued. _ "I'm looking forward to it."

"Me too, I want to try to bend you a little bit," the sorcerer gave him a little smile and looked at his watch briefly. "Jihoon still has time to show up, do you want some tea?"

"I'll take it," - Soonyoung gave one of those smiles that looked more like a face and sat down at the small table in the kitchen.

The noise of the smoking kettle was already part of Soonyoung's daily life and, not for the first time, he got lost in thoughts while paying attention to it. 

There were so many things Soonyoung wanted to ask the sorcerer, but he wasn't sure if the questions would be well received, and he didn't want to offend the only person who didn't treat him as something to  _ possess _ instead of something alive.

"So what?" Jeonghan raised his eyes to Soonyoung, almost as if he could feel that he wanted to say something.

"I... Do you know anything about my mother?" Was what ended up asking instead of the words that formed on the tip of his tongue; it would be weird to ask if Jeonghan had known her, and it would be even weirder if he asked too many personal questions without realizing it. It would be weird if he asked something about his relationship with Jihoon, and he refused to answer, although he had no obligation to feed the curiosity of the Incendiary.

"Well," Jeonghan eventually answered by frowning and pouring tea in two ceramic cups that seemed to have been extracted from different eras. "I think I have some interesting stories for you."

◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌

Lee Jihoon was late.

Because, obviously, he had more to do besides babysitting the  _ Moroii _ all the time. It was great that he finally found a safe place to leave him, inclusive because it meant that he could go back to work here and there in exchange for things that would be useful in the future and some money to keep feeding the black hole that was Soonyoung's stomach.

And, also, he needed to stay away from him to clear his head. Things were a little different and confusing since Christmas, mainly because Hoshi had finally stopped doing that weird thing of creeping himself out and repelling Jihoon with all his might. Jihoon wasn't sure what to do with this information, so he simply avoided thinking about it and probably would never talk about it.

Moreover, Jihoon had been avoiding taking blood since he had been poisoned. It was hard to control himself when the smell seemed even more delicious than before, but he knew Jeonghan would leave him to die in case he made the same mistake twice. The  _ dhampir _ felt that something in himself had changed since then, but he still didn't know exactly how to name the sensation that poked the bottom of his mind and made an uncomfortable tickle run down his spine. But maybe it didn't matter that much.

What mattered was that the sudden approach of the two made him uncomfortable and that a visceral warning told him that the apparent peace they were living in would end more quickly than he could have foreseen.

There were  _ footprints _ outside the house. 

Jihoon had made sure to find a building to live far enough away from human settlements, so he knew that the tracks were not of people. They weren't from Jeonghan, they weren't his, and they weren't from Soonyoung, the poignant smell of watermelon denounced.

He always found it curious how that smell stunk his nostrils when a storm was approaching but, that time, it didn't seem to be the case. Well, he  _ knew _ a storm was coming, but there had to be something more. Storms didn't leave footprints in front of other people's houses.

At least Soonyoung wasn't with him, so it was one less concern as he quickly wrapped himself in the dry, snow-covered woods behind the property. The smell was still fresh, so he knew that whatever it was couldn't have gone too far.

The cold froze his breath before he even left his nose, and, not for the first time, Jihoon cursed it. He hated snow, he hated winter and everything that came with it. Maybe it was because of what he was, or maybe it was just his personality, but Jihoon liked to feel like a lizard, always stretched and nesting around warm things. Maybe it was what made him gravitate to Soonyoung in the first place.

It made sense that he emanated so much heat, now that Jihoon knew he was an Arsonist; it made sense that he ended up being so attracted to him.

Jihoon's distraction didn't last long, though. A slap soon reached his ears, and he knew that, whatever it was, it couldn't be too far. His eyes closed for an instant while he tried to orient himself and decide which way to go. There was something odd.

The smell came from everywhere and nowhere, and Jihoon thanked Hell for Soonyoung not being there or ran serious risks of losing his biggest investment. If he couldn't even know where it came from, how could he protect anyone?

He counted one, two, ten seconds before a dry branch snapped and reported the position of whatever had followed him. Jihoon turned on his heels and felt his stomach sink when a grayish blur rolled over him.

The  _ dhampir _ rolled in the snow for an instant and then jumped back on his feet, growling at the creature as he tried to identify what, hell, was it.

He waited for the creature to attack again but, to his surprise, it only seemed extremely confused while watching him and sniffing the surrounding air a few times.

Honestly, Jihoon was already tired of lycanthropes and wouldn't wait to be knocked down once more, so he threw himself on it and stuck the sharpest dagger in the side of the creature's face. 

The two rolled together in the snow for an instant as the lycanthrope tried, at all costs, to dodge Jihoon's blades, but it was impossible. After all, he had had many centuries of training and refused to lose under any circumstances.

Jihoon stuck a knee to the creature's chest as soon as he managed to knock it down and kept the dagger pointed at his neck, struggling to catch his breath before trying to say anything.

"Who sent you?" He asked, letting the air out with force. There was definitely something wrong with that creature, but he still couldn't identify exactly what it was.

It was just that she seemed... too weak to have been wounded by Jihoon alone, and he hoped to get something before it fainted.

When it didn't get an answer, he pressed the blade lightly against the wet mess of hair, blood, and snow that was the creature and narrowed his eyes.

"If you don't answer, I will kill you and cook your pieces."

"You're not him," the creature growled, leaving Jihoon even more confused than he had been all day.

"What are you talking about, asshole?"

For a change, the lycanthrope did nothing but give him a confused look, and Jihoon's knee moved faster than his mind, hitting the belly of the thing.

"You're not the  _ Moroii,"  _ the thing grunted and, judging by its tone, seemed to have realized that Jihoon was something even worse than it expected him to be.

"Well, that's obvious," Jihoon frowned. "I find it kind of hard to confuse a  _ dhampir _ and a  _ Moroii _ , you incompetent."

"You have his scent," the lycanthrope explained, shrinking as he felt he would be kicked once more. However, the speech was enough to stop Jihoon's movement, which tumbled his head aside while several thoughts invaded his mind at the same time.

If that were true and Hoshi's scent was now a part of him, he could draw the  _ Strigoi  _ to himself without putting the boy at risk. And if the scent was part of him, maybe something else also was.

"Right, and what were you after him for? Whoever sent you should have known it wouldn't be that easy."

Jihoon felt when the lycanthrope tried to move and, without thinking twice, sank the dagger in his belly, onto a point where he would bleed a lot, but it would take time to kill. He still needed answers.

"Move one more time, and the next one will be in your eye," he warned. "Now, start talking."

"I was poisoned," the creature spat blood against Jihoon's face and spasmed once. " _ Moroii's _ blood cancels out any poison or curse."

_ Moroii's _ blood was more for poison by itself, but Jihoon said nothing while trying to think. He needed to ask Jeonghan to burn some of his blood and see what happened, and he also needed to know what exactly Brígida's blood could do if mixed with his own.

Jihoon supported his left hand on the forehead of the lycanthrope briefly and kept his gaze fixed on it, trying to figure out what he should do if he wanted to see some magic happening.

He felt the creature cooling down more and more under his touch and realized that that story of poisoning should be true because he wasn't physically hurt enough to justify all that weakness. But apart from that, Jihoon couldn't feel anything.

He snapped his fingers a few times and stuck his hand in the dirty snow, still watching the dying creature under him. Then he pressed the dagger blade against his own left hand and watched as blood soaked it.

As he had nothing to lose, he dipped the index finger of his right hand in the blood and drew the symbols that Soonyoung had on his back.

Lee Jihoon definitely didn't expect to be thrown away by the explosion that followed, but at least he had achieved some result. And so he felt the corners of his lips pulling into a manic little smile.

Several meters away, the lycanthrope burned in green flames that looked like anything, except natural, and not even the snow seemed to be able to put it out. He tried to get closer and needed a lot of self-control so as not to stick a hand in the flames and find out if they were real or not; the lycanthrope seemed to be really charred, and Jihoon wasn't that stupid.

And, as if he was just waiting for the perfect moment, the sky opened in a storm that soaked him with freezing water in less than a minute and reminded him that he was  _ very _ late.

He kept the gun inside his coat and, after one more look at the remains of the lycanthrope, started to make his way to Jeonghan's house as fast as he could while paying attention to the surroundings. If he smelled like  _ Moroii, _ it meant that soon other things would come after him because they thought he was Hoshi.

Jihoon was trembling from knocking his teeth when he finally hit Jeonghan's gate, and the torrential rain had turned into hail that hurt a lot whenever he hit his unprotected head.

He snorted and shrunk inside his coat, thinking vaguely that it was good that he was not a human being or, by that time, he would be with about five different diseases because of the cold.

It took a long time for Jeonghan to attend, and when he did, Jihoon was no longer so sure that he wanted to get out of the rain; the sorcerer's gaze made it very clear that he was in a lot of trouble, although he could not guess for sure what the reason would be.

"I won't ask what happened," Jeonghan said and went back inside, not bothering to share the umbrella with Jihoon. "He's pissed off. He's  _ really _ pissed off."

Of course, he is.

"I can imagine," that's all Jihoon answered before entering and stood in the entrance, not knowing whether to splash water inside or to wait for Soonyoung to come to meet him.

"If you're gonna come in, take off those clothes. I won't clean any mess of yours."

Maybe that meant that if he wanted to talk to Soonyoung, he would have to go after him, so he left his boots and clothes soaked in a corner near the door before wrapping himself in a towel that Jeonghan left on the back of the chair and went to the basement.

Hoshi was sitting in a lotus position on one of the metal benches and, judging by his expression of few friends, was even more irritated than Jihoon could have foreseen. He knew he was late and that he hadn't warned anything, but it hadn't been that long, had it?

Anyway, he felt he should explain himself and felt stupidly ridiculous for being there, with his hair dripping and shaking so much that, if he were human, he would probably be hypothermic.

"I had to kill something before I came," Jihoon said cautiously and contained the desire to get closer to the Arsonist and drink some of his heat. "Hm. Sorry?"

"Of course," - Soonyoung rolled his eyes as if he didn't believe him and yawned. "Let's go, I'm tired of sitting here."

"Okay, I just... I need to talk to Jeonghan about something, and we can go," the  _ dhampir  _ said quickly and wrapped the towel around his shoulders before going up again to look for Jeonghan, that was sitting in the living room, in front of the fire, and didn't move while Jihoon approached.

The smaller's discomfort was palpable and, honestly, Jeonghan was having a little fun; Jihoon never looked like that and it was funny how his emotions had started to stink a lot more since he had started with all that  _ Moroii's _ blood-drinking clownery.

"So?" The sorcerer finally questioned.

"I managed to do magic by accident," Jihoon said and finally gave in to his desire to approach the fire. "Green fire everywhere."

"That's what you wanted, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but there's one little thing I didn't expect... A lycanthropist tried to corner me today because he thought I was  _ Moroii  _ and, well, we know I'm not."

"You're not going to turn into Hoshi if that's what worries you," Jeonghan let out a dry laugh through his nose. "Soon the blood will totally mix, and you will be you again."

"That's great, I guess, but I was going to ask if you want some of the blood to study in those greenhouses of yours."

"If you want to give it to me, I'll take it," Jeonghan shrunk his wings before stretching them briefly.

Jihoon nodded and fetched a deep plate in the kitchen before reopening the cut in his hand, hissing softly between his teeth thanks to the pain. Apparently, everything Jeonghan owned inside that house was bewitched. 

He watched the blood flow until a deep puddle formed and then gave it to the sorcerer before calling Soonyoung to go and then put on the drenched clothes again. 

"I'll let you know as soon as I find something useful," Jeonghan said and delivered an umbrella to Soonyoung. "See you tomorrow."

Fortunately, the rain had softened while they were inside, and Jihoon let Soonyoung keep the umbrella just for himself; it was not as if it would make any difference at that time. The two walked in a sepulchral silence, and as soon as they got home, Jihoon rushed to take a hot bath and wipe the filthy cut on his hand as he tried to think.

He felt his body vibrate lightly with a new energy that was definitely not there before, but he didn't know exactly what to do about it. Besides, his body never seemed to want to warm up enough.

"You are weirder than usual," Soonyoung commented while filling a bowl of soup. He was still upset because he was left waiting for about four hours, but his curiosity still spoke louder than anything else.

"Thanks, sweetie," Jihoon retorted without even looking at him. "How are you feeling?"

"Too tired to keep angry. What the hell were you doing earlier?"

"I told you, killing something. A lycanthropist was circling the area, it wanted to get you."

"As always," Soonyoung sighed and faced the food. "I'm tired of it."

"I guess it's going to get worse now that you're getting stronger."

"Yeah, maybe," he sighed and then looked at Jihoon again. "You look a bit pale."

"I'm feeling pretty pale," Jihoon laughed softly and closed his eyes before leaning against a chair. His head was definitely spinning.

"Don't blame me," Soonyoung said quietly and finished the soup in one sip. 

"Are you cold?" That's all Jihoon said, feeling another chill go through his spine.

"No, I turned on the heater when we arrived... I can turn it up if you want," Soonyoung frowned and actually looked at Jihoon for the first time that day.

It was hard to know exactly what, but there was something tremendously wrong with him.

Without waiting for an answer, Soonyoung stood up and raised the temperature before pressing his warm palms against Jihoon's cheeks. However, before he could think of anything to say, Jihoon's eyes rolled in orbits once, and the little heat he still owned flowed quickly through the  _ Moroii's _ fingers.

Soonyoung's head turned vertiginously, and he had to fight against the impulse to move away because Jihoon would fall if he let go of him and because it wasn't possible that he had died that way.

The first thing that went through his mind was to call Jeonghan, in fact, but a brief look out the window made him realize that the sorcerer might not even get there thanks to the blizzard that had started to fall again had little time. But if he could guide him through the phone... 

With a frightened sigh, Soonyoung tried to lift Jihoon in his arms and grumbled when he noticed that he was much heavier than he looked.

Climbing the stairs with him was a fucking hard, and he felt real hatred when he tried to kick Jihoon's door open and found it was locked. With no choices, Soonyoung walked a few more staggering steps and let Jihoon's body fall on his bed, although only the sight of that thing there made him extremely uncomfortable.

He tried to wrap Jihoon in as many blankets as he could find and wondered where he would leave a cell phone in case he was Jihoon because he already knew he didn't use to take it with him when he left home.

After a quick search of the lower rooms, the only conclusion he reached was that he should be in his bedroom, and the only solution he could think of was to try to break the door down. But, again, Soonyoung was too small and too weak to do such a thing, and his mind seemed simply not working.

And, right, maybe he shouldn't try to do anything without Jeonghan having taught him, but he had no alternative but to try to shatter the door down.

Soonyoung was scared enough to try anything he had at his disposal, but he couldn't focus enough to feel that flow of energy behind the temple he always felt when he nudged the source of power inside his mind.

He leaned his hands on the handle and twisted for something, anything to happen, but the door remained as still as it had been before.

Soonyoung was aware that he needed to do it faster, or maybe Jihoon would end up dying for good, but thinking about it was more hindering than helping, completely distracting him from what needed to be done. However, it was not as if he could control the resentment that ate him inside and made it difficult to breathe the same air as Jihoon every time.

He needed four attempts until he could feel a spark inside him, and three more to draw it out. 

Soonyoung was sweating cold and trembling with effort when the door vibrated lightly under his fingers and, before he could really think what to do, the wood exploded into the room and covered him with sharp splinters. Jihoon would  _ kill  _ him. 

After a moment to catch his breath, Soonyoung finally allowed himself to enter the forbidden room and look around. Notice that no bodies were hanging or anything out of the ordinary, quite disappointing because Jihoon had really led him to believe that something super dangerous used to happen there.

Jihoon's furniture didn't seem to match much, as if it had been taken from different eras, and the bed seemed too new to suggest it was rarely used; however, he wasn't there to evaluate the furniture. Soonyoung found the phone on the old-fashioned dresser after looking around twice and kept walking from side to side while waiting for Jeonghan to finally answer.

He was afraid to go back to his own room and find out that Jihoon was dead, so he would postpone as long as possible.

"Hello?" Jeonghan answered after a few touches, visibly confused.

"Hm, hi," Soonyoung replied quickly. Jihoon is freezing like a dead man and fainted, what do I do?"

"How did that happen?" He managed to notice the tone of urgency that tinged the sorcerer's soft voice and, after taking a deep breath, began to return to his own room.

"I don't know! He was all strange when he went to pick me up, you saw, and was complaining of cold when we arrived. And then he fainted."

At that time, Soonyoung's nerves were almost totally numb. He heard the distant echo of his own words as if someone was telling him something new about the weather, warning him that it would rain all night while he was sleeping. His body didn't seem real.

Jihoon remained rigid as a board and, for a moment, Soonyoung really couldn't tell whether he was dead or not. He couldn't even tell if things like Jihoon were alive, anyway.

"Right, he told me he managed to make magic today... that's probably the cause," Jeonghan's voice sounded distant as if he had put the call on the speaker. "He left me a little blood to look at, but I won't get an answer so soon, so I need you to try to give back a little heat to him. Are you still ill if you stay near him?"

"No, I think my body got used to it," he answered quickly and sank a finger in Jihoon's cheek to see if he'd react. "What do I have to do?"

"Think of it as your first task and don't be scared, ok?" Jeonghan asked as if he was talking to a small child, and if Soonyoung wasn't so lethargic, he would have rolled his eyes. "You will find marks between his scapulas very similar to the ones you have on your back, I need you to put your hand in them."

"Alright," it was Soonyoung's turn to put the call on the speaker and drop the phone on the table before trying to turn Jihoon's inert body.

He pulled the blouse up to reveal Jihoon's shoulders and held his breath as he saw the state of his back. Some marks were clearly there from birth, and others seemed to have been inflicted with a hot iron. He wondered if they hurt at the time and if they still hurt.

Touching Jihoon would never cease to be awkward, but it seemed even worse when they were in that situation. The boy's skin looked as thin as paper under his fingers, and as much as he usually wanted to see him break and burn, he was afraid to hurt him at that moment.

"Okay, I'm touching," he warned after clearing his throat.

"Okay, can you reach your own marks with the other hand?"

"Yes, I can."

"Okay, then do it. It'll be even better if you can throw some tears over his marks because then you'll have how to transfer your energy without needing to keep touching."

Soonyoung nodded, even if Jeonghan couldn't see, and touched his own skin for a few moments until he bumped into the damned marks that had ruined his life.

"Don't try to hold the energy, otherwise, you will get hurt," Jeonghan said, and Soonyoung murmured a "right", even though he was still not feeling any energy.

Being sincere, the only thing Soonyoung wanted was that he wouldn't end up blowing up Jihoon the same way he had done with the door, so he would do anything Jeonghan told him to do.

The pull in his mind seemed to come easier that time, however, and Soonyoung tried not to let fear get in his way.

Under his touch, Jihoon choked and tightened his body before getting back inert on the mattress. A jolt shook  _ Moroii's _ arm and, moments later, a constant flow of heat began to emanate from his fingers.

"I think I did it!" He whispered, trying not to shake his own concentration, and allowed himself to sit on the edge of the bed.

"Let me know if he reacts."

"Okay."

Soonyoung could feel Jihoon's heart beating softly through the marks, and without him noticing, he combined the rhythm of his breathing with his own. It was easier to think that way, any way, and he tried to fight the panic that still threatened to crawl through his brain.

One, two, six minutes passed without anything happening, then Soonyoung ended up relaxing more and allowed his mind to wander to another place.

However, this didn't last long. Soonyoung felt the flow of energy suddenly increasing through him, and before he could warn Jeonghan or at least try to find out what was happening, his mind was no longer there.

Soonyoung was everything and nothing at the same time, and his mind seemed fuller than it had ever been.

He still had the vague awareness that he was at home with his body well anchored to the bed, but he couldn't understand the dysmorphic reality that was opening before his eyes; he saw Jihoon face down on his bed, he saw his hand on the boy's back, but he also saw and felt  _ through  _ reality.

It seemed that Soonyoung was trying to see through dirty water, and, more than anything, he couldn't keep away the sensation of freezing cold that spread through his arms and legs. With a delay of a few seconds, he finally realized what was happening.

That was Jihoon's mind.

And he also knew he shouldn't be in there, but he had no idea what to do to get out, and he couldn't force his hands to dislodge the marks of both of them.

The cold intensified for a moment, and then things finally seemed to come into focus. 

Soonyoung saw a little boy who must have been two years old at most, wrapped in a completely dirty light blue cloth, and saw his sunken cheeks as if he were starving. Then he saw the little boy stick his fangs in the neck of an orange cat and suck until the animal was no more than an inert mass on his skinny little arms and then laugh.

With horror, he realized that that child was the same Jihoon who liked to stick his fangs in  _ his  _ neck.

The next instant, the boy was a little bigger and seemed less scared, even if he was surrounded by creatures much bigger than him. They said something, but it was as if Soonyoung was listening through a very bad radio and full of static.

He gasped when one of the creatures jumped on Jihoon, but he should have known by now that he didn't have to worry so much; whatever he was, Jihoon was extremely lethal just because he existed. But knowing that didn't stop him from getting even sicker when the boy ripped the creature's heart out with his hands and ate it like a delicious dessert.

"You are a hateful little thing," Soonyoung could hear it in his next memory, and the visceral reaction of his body was instantaneous. He  _ knew  _ that voice, he remembered it the same way he would remember a punch.

"You should be proud of me, then," Jihoon answered.

It was the thing that had killed his family, and Jihoon was talking to it as if they were old acquaintances.

"As if a  _ dhampir  _ was worthy of pride," even if the thing was on his back, Soonyoung could almost see his lips crisping with disgust when he uttered the word  _ dhampir _ .

In the memory, Jihoon smiled without showing his teeth and said something else that Soonyoung could not understand, but had seen more than enough. He forced himself to break the connection and didn't care about the choking cough that leaked from the lips of the demon in bed.

Soonyoung's hands trembled vertiginously and there was blood on his palms, even though he was sure he hadn't cut himself or Jihoon, even if he deserved it.

Soonyoung felt stupid for having trusted Jihoon, and even more stupid for having thought that they could be friends, for thinking that damned demon even liked him to the point of continuing protecting him after he got what he wanted. As far as he knew, he could very well be in collusion with the murderer of his family,  _ his  _ murderer.

He needed to get out of there, and he needed fresh air, and he needed to put as much distance between his body and Jihoon's. He would vomit if he spent one more second in the presence of that damned thing.

"Hoshi?" Jeonghan called over the phone, worried about the strange noises Jihoon made. "Did he wake up?"

"I don't know," Soonyoung's voice trembled, and he moved further away because he knew he would punch Jihoon if he stayed too close. "I can't stay here anymore."

"What happened?" Jeonghan's voice tinged with concern. "Is there something trying to break into the house?"

"I wish it was just it," Soonyoung laughed without humor. "You know what he is, don't you?"

"Yes, he never told you?"

"I just found out while I was walking inside his head by accident," Soonyoung tried to sound casual. "And I saw him chatting with the guy who killed me, so please let me stay at his house, or I'll be eaten alive on the street today because I can't spend another single second here."

"Too much information, my goodness," Jeonghan said, disoriented. "You're always welcome here, but what are we going to do with him? And how will you get here safely?"

"I know how to kill," Soonyoung assured, even though he never killed anything alone. "And I don't care what happens to him now, he's breathing, and he's not pale, even though I want him to really die."

"Wishes are a very powerful thing, don't keep saying things you don't really mean," Jeonghan said quietly. "And right, so, I believe you're not lying about the moron's state, so you can come whenever

you want. I'll be waiting for you, and then we can talk about... this with more calm."

"Ok, thanks," Soonyoung answered and then hung up before Jeonghan could change his mind.

He took another look at Jihoon, confirming that he seemed a little more normal than before just not to upset Jeonghan, and then gathered everything he had in an improvised bundle with a bedsheet before leaving for the terrifying cold of the evening. If he was quick, he could get there before it got completely dark.

The  _ Moroii  _ focused on the simple tasks he needed to do - breathe slowly, look to the sides before crossing the streets - to try to muffle the roar of his thoughts that threatened to drown him and control his scent. He couldn't afford to freak out or start vomiting before he was safe, although he didn't know what it meant anymore.

The stillness was making him anxious, and that was only one more reason to dislike winter. He knew he was alone there but, even so, Soonyoung felt like he was being watched by someone or something, and he knew that his chances to defend himself were very small, considering how drained he was after all the energy and heat he had spent trying to revive  _ him. _

The amount of snow on the ground slowed his steps to the point of making him snort and shiver with the humidity penetrating his legs, but it wasn't at all bad. He wouldn't be able to set himself on fire accidentally if he was partially frozen.

When the chills got too strong to bear, Soonyoung really started to consider that  _ maybe  _ he wasn't truly alone. He held his things with more strength and tried to increase the speed of his steps, but he didn't obtain much success. By his accounts, he was about fifteen minutes away from the sorcerer's house, and he needed to manage to reduce it as much as possible without drawing too much attention to himself, in case other things were also lurking.

Soonyoung wanted to scream when he reached one of the main crossroads and needed to stop because it was simply impossible to cross between the moving cars and there was too much snow to try to pass by another place. However, his instincts got even more agitated than before, and Soonyoung soon concluded that being run over probably wasn't even that bad.

The boy ran between the cars and ignored the horns completely before continuing to run as fast as he could without slipping and stabbing himself on the ground, but he could feel that the thing behind him had also accelerated.

And, damn it, he couldn't just take that thing to Jeonghan's front door.

Soonyoung pinched his fingers around the handle of the knife at his waist and stopped abruptly before he stuck himself in a side alley stinking and full of garbage while trying to think. He couldn't wait to be attacked, but he also knew he wouldn't be able to run forever.

Adrenaline pulsed through his veins and, at that time, he knew it wouldn't help to keep trying to disguise the smell of his emotions. Maybe he should have pretended to be an idiot and continued with Jihoon, after all, because a fainted  _ dhampir  _ certainly wouldn't be able to cause him much damage.

He felt his heart sinking when the smell of rotten fruits invaded his nose and tied the bundle to his back quickly to wield the spear and knife more appropriately. Soonyoung really didn't want to pay to see, so he threw the spear against the brownish blur as soon as it appeared in his field of vision, narrowly missing his target. A shaky sigh escaped from his lips.

If he threw the knife, he would be totally unarmed and ready to die again and definitely.

Soonyoung knew that nobody would come out of nowhere to save him, and he knew he wouldn't be able to guarantee himself in a physical collision, so he did the one thing he shouldn't do without supervision: he pulled the threads of magic in his mind with enough strength to hurt and, in an instant, his hands were wrapped in orange flames.

He had no time to admire his own power at that moment, so he just kept waving his hands everywhere in an attempt to make the flames spread more, and, in an instant, he was right in the middle of a circle of fire. Nothing could reach him if he stayed inside, but Hoshi didn't know very well how long he could keep the magic flowing before he collapsed.

He risked a few steps and sighed relieved to see the flames moving according to his body, but he didn't know for sure how he would get out of there wrapped in the fire without attracting the attention of the Fire Department. But again, he had no choice.

He threw a flame against the thing to make sure it would be too hurt to follow him and started running through the parallel streets that he knew he had more chances of being empty.

The flames made the snow evaporate before Soonyoung even touched the ground, so his mobility improved considerably, despite the exhaustion that began to embrace his body. Just a little more...

The boy took a few laps to make sure he wasn't being followed anymore and, when he was satisfied, he finally headed to the gate of Jeonghan and extended a hand out of the flames to be able to knock.

The stench of burnt cloth rose quickly, reminding him that that fire was quite real and, as soon as he heard the sorcerer approaching, he let the energy flow through his fingers quickly and went back to being an inert and frightened shell that ran inside as soon as he saw Jeonghan.

"It seems that you will collapse at any moment," Jeonghan commented and took the bundle from Soonyoung's arms. "Go take a shower while I make you some tea. Then we'll talk."

Soonyoung nodded and let the half-burned clothes fall around him before shrinking into the narrow bathtub that Jeonghan owned. The hot water relaxed the tension in his muscles instantly, and he stared at his hands under the water for a few moments as reality collapsed upon him.

Until that moment, he still had hopes that all that story of being an Arsonist was a misunderstanding, he hoped he had been confused with another Soonyoung who could have survived another fire. However, the last hours were more than enough proof that everything was quite real and that he could never escape from it.

Besides, he felt betrayed for real.

He had trusted Jihoon enough to allow him to touch him and, after the hug they shared at Christmas, he really believed that things would change and the  _ dhampir  _ would tell him more about his past. However, all he had gained was the discovery that he and the murderer not only knew each other but also how they used to meet often. Who would assure him that the two were still not meeting when Jihoon left for his supposed hunts? Who would guarantee that Jihoon wouldn't give him to it the first chance he had?

"Your brains are stinking from so much effort," Jeonghan said as he entered the bathroom, carrying a smoking cup. "Drink it all."

"I don't know what to do," Soonyoung sighed and tried to get ready in a way that didn't end up with his whole body exposed to Jeonghan before he got the cup.

"I'm not looking at your cock, don't worry," Jeonghan rolled his eyes and leaned back at the door. "And what I think you should do is rest, but I know you won't nail your eyes until you have answers."

I'm glad you know.," he grumbled, feeling his cheeks warm.

"You're very easy to read," the sorcerer shrugged. 'But I believe the person you should talk to is Jihoon himself, not me. His secrets are not mine to tell, and I'm sure he has a good reason for omitting some things."

"He omitted  _ all  _ things. How can I trust him if, during all this time, he even told me what he was?"

"I don't know, emotions are a very complicated area that I can't understand even if I try very hard. But I thought you liked him...?"

"I like to have a roof over my head," Soonyoung objectively retorted and finished the tea in one hot sip. "But I never want to see him again."

"He'll come for you as soon as he recovers, you know that."

"And you will say I don't want to talk to him. If he were just a demon I could handle it, but..."

"Honestly, Soonyoung, what did you think he was?" Jeonghan snorted a bit exasperatedly. "Do you at least know for real what a  _ dhampir  _ is, or did you find out by reading those horrible human novels? You are as a demon as he is, also."

Soonyoung had no answer to that, so he stood still and put his hands back in the water, which was already starting to cool down.

"Talk to him tomorrow," Jeonghan said.

"I'll only talk to him if I have the truth about everything. I don't want to be left in the dark and have to discover horrible things because I fell into his memories accidentally while trying to do a good deed," he snitched. "And don't tell me I'm as a demon as he is because I'm not. I would never do what I saw him doing."

"If you say so," Jeonghan shrugged and started walking down the hall. "I only have one bed, so you decide if you want to sleep with me or freeze on the floor."

Okay, maybe staying with Jeonghan was even worse than staying with Jihoon, but at least he already knew from the beginning what he was dealing with. He put on the clean clothes that Jeonghan left for him and went to a part of the house that he had never been before while trying to find out how he would not end up hitting the sorcerer's wings while he slept.

"Lie on the corner of the wall," Jeonghan said while wearing ridiculous pajamas full of little cows that didn't match at all with his status as a connoisseur of occult knowledge.

Soonyoung obeyed and tried not to think too much when Jeonghan lay beside him and waved his fingers before settling so that the wings would be out of bed, his face ridiculously close to his.

"I can't feel as intensely as Jihoon, but I can still smell your emotions. Quiet down," Jeonghan yawned and snapped his fingers twice in front of Soonyoung's face before tracing a rune on his forehead. "Sweet dreams."

And with that, Soonyoung sank into darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'll try to be less lazy with the next update, promise!

**Author's Note:**

> see ya in the next chapter!


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